We received our second update from Marti McElreath, who lives in Shichigahama, Japan, where the aftermath of the tsunami and earthquake is still being felt by the residents. As is typical with natural disasters, when the media coverage begins to fade people not directly affected begin to lose interest and move on with their lives. Our updates with Marti have shown that the situation is far from being resolved, and little improvements have been made since our last update.
While Marti was actually attempting to email us last week, a large earthquake hit. This was on Thursday night and she lost power and all lines of communication. Marti described her sudden panic, and how she needed to race back to the evacuation center to make sure everyone was okay. What struck her the most though, wasn’t the earthquake itself, it was people’s reactions. Everyone fell back asleep rather quickly, and the environment wasn’t one of pure fear. Marti says the mentality at this point is just that there is nothing else to lose. Over 200 evacuees have already lost their homes and all their belongings.
They don’t have anything else to fear. Marti sums up the mix of emotions saying, “It is awful that they have lost so much, but at the same time, it is a relief to know that the physical and emotional progress that we have all made cannot be completely erased. For over 300,000 people staying in evacuation centers in Japan, there is literally no direction in which to move but forward and up.” There is something beautiful about the fact that there is still a sense of hope among the Japanese people. Their will to improve the situation and remain positive is truly inspirational.
To combat the current conditions temporary housing is being built. The train system took another big hit because of the most recent earthquake, and repairs are being started on that. One of the two middle schools in Shichigahama was rendered unsafe and completely unusable, so as of right now the two schools are combining. Classes are scheduled to start on April 21, and the town does not want to push that date back. Everyone is attempting to regain some form of normalcy. Going about their day to day tasks despite all the setbacks is expected. The most current concern, other than the housing crunch, inconsistent supply of electricity, and lack of transportation, is the future of education. It is unrealistic to believe that without a place to study and learn, children will be able to succeed.
On a positive note, many people have volunteered their support to the people of Shichigahama. Volunteers can be found cooking food, handing out toys to children, cutting hair, and massaging feet. Marti asked us to find it in our hearts to donate whatever we can. Even the smallest amount is appreciated. The more support the better. The hope is that sometime in the near future people will be allowed to shower on a daily basis and get some space to themselves. Until then, 300 people are cramped into one center and waiting for their privacy.

Check out the pictures we have from Marti on the Lobby O.