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Tsunami Reflections-Otsuchi Remembered by Charles A. Pomeroy
Synopsis
Japan’s horrific tsunami in March of 2011 was seared into the minds of TV viewers worldwide, but few had any idea of where the tsunami hit on that fateful day or to its long-term impact. This book answers many of these and other questions with maps, photos, and text providing a sense of those coastal towns. There are links to videos also, with one showing the tsunami surging into Central Otsuchi, the author’s adopted home town.
Excerpt
As Fate Would Have It
Earthquake…tsunami…fire…the triple whammy that destroyed Otsuchi caught everyone by surprise on the 11th of March, 2011. That town in Iwate Prefecture was only one of many on the Sanriku Coast to be shaken to the core by the Great East Japan Earthquake, then engulfed by huge walls of seawater followed by flames consuming what remained. For us the loss of Atsuko’s hometown had triple consequences—the loss of our home, of the community chosen for our retirement, and of family members. Bad things come in threes, it seems.
As fate would have it, we were not there on that unfortunate day. For the first time since making Otsuchi our primary residence in 2004 we had decided to spend the winter in our Tokyo condo. Located in Ayase, a community in Adachi Ward on Tokyo’s north side, the two-bedroom apartment had been our home since our marriage and one we kept even after moving to far-off Sanriku. From 2004, our yearly travel schedule had included a short visit to Tokyo in April to coincide with cherry-blossom season, followed by a trip to Honolulu for a month, a return to Tokyo for two weeks or so to catch up with friends and colleagues there, and then in June back to the tranquility of Otsuchi.
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By Simon Denman, Author and Founder of Readers in the KnowSynopsis
Japan’s horrific tsunami in March of 2011 was seared into the minds of TV viewers worldwide, but few had any idea of where the tsunami hit on that fateful day or to its long-term impact. This book answers many of these and other questions with maps, photos, and text providing a sense of those coastal towns. There are links to videos also, with one showing the tsunami surging into Central Otsuchi, the author’s adopted home town.
Excerpt
As Fate Would Have It
Earthquake…tsunami…fire…the triple whammy that destroyed Otsuchi caught everyone by surprise on the 11th of March, 2011. That town in Iwate Prefecture was only one of many on the Sanriku Coast to be shaken to the core by the Great East Japan Earthquake, then engulfed by huge walls of seawater followed by flames consuming what remained. For us the loss of Atsuko’s hometown had triple consequences—the loss of our home, of the community chosen for our retirement, and of family members. Bad things come in threes, it seems.
As fate would have it, we were not there on that unfortunate day. For the first time since making Otsuchi our primary residence in 2004 we had decided to spend the winter in our Tokyo condo. Located in Ayase, a community in Adachi Ward on Tokyo’s north side, the two-bedroom apartment had been our home since our marriage and one we kept even after moving to far-off Sanriku. From 2004, our yearly travel schedule had included a short visit to Tokyo in April to coincide with cherry-blossom season, followed by a trip to Honolulu for a month, a return to Tokyo for two weeks or so to catch up with friends and colleagues there, and then in June back to the tranquility of Otsuchi.