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Overwhelmed…[After one month]

Day after day, as we see and hear new reports from public media and from those travelling north, we continue to be overwhelmed by the extent of the destruction and loss caused by the tsunami.

CRASH director Jonathan Wilson, returning after a trip to visit the base camps, said that they drove all one day and never left the disaster zone.

read more...

Overwhelming Response

At the same time, the response from churches and Christians from around the world – through prayer, money, supplies, volunteers – has been amazing.

We and our Japanese friends have been truly touched to see this. Also, the church and missionary community in Japan has responded in big ways. But it has been wonderful to see what has been and is being accomplished by such a group of people, themselves dealing with the impact of the troubles around them.

[Here is One Story]

A young mother came in with two little girls, maybe 5 and 3 years old, saying her daughters wanted to donate some of their own money to help those affected by the tsunami. She turned to the girls and asked how much they wanted to give, and the younger girl opened her little purse, took out 11 yen (about 13 cents) and with a shy smile gave it to me.

The older girl stood quietly looking into her purse, then gave the same amount.

The mother then added another 1000 yen ($12) and said to her girls, “There, maybe with this money, some little boy or girl who’s lost everything will be able to have a ball to play with.” The girls looked so happy.

Not long after those girls’ gift, someone received a request from a school or evacuation center wondering if it would be possible to get some baseballs and bats for the children there.

The request was immediately sent out to groups overseas offering to send whatever’s needed, and apparently very soon a shipment of balls, bats, gloves, and bases was on its way to Japan. Simple stories like these help keep us going day to day...

[End]

Japan as a nation is also responding. High school students have spent several days on busy streets in downtown Tokyo, collecting thousands of dollars for relief efforts.

Overwhelming Emotions

We often feel the frustration of wishing we could do more to help. The emotional needs of the people around us, however, are so much greater than our own.

Yesterday, walking to our train station I saw a lady with a small bag of groceries, wearing rubber boots, rubber gloves, a thick, large rain coat with the hood up and a surgical mask so the only part of her body exposed to the air was her eyes.

Even though there are reassurances that the levels of radiation in Tokyo are far below safety threshold levels, I could see fear radiating in this lady.

Many are afraid of radiation, or of future earthquakes, afraid of the economic downturn or maybe especially afraid of the unknown. In the devastated areas many are wondering why bother trying to start over again...

The problems forcing the shutdown of the nuclear power plants mean that we all deal with the fact of not enough electricity to go around.

Several people have asked how they can face a future where the economy might not recover, where there might not be enough power, where they might not be able to send their children to university.

People are also finding that Jesus does have answers for these kinds of questions and we see a hunger to hear more.

Complete Prayer List

At 2:46 PM local time, March 11, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake struck Japan off the eastern coast of Miyagi Prefecture. This is the largest recorded earthquake ever to have struck Japan, and one of the five largest recorded earthquakes in the world.


HARD-HIT AREAS:

• In many coastal cities, the ground sank as a result of the earthquake. Because of this, these cities experience floods of several feet twice a day at high tide. Many of these people are financially unable to move away from these areas. Pray for those whose lives and homes are being damaged by these floods. (5/11)
• Weeks after the earthquake, heavy aftershocks and other unrelated earthquakes are still being felt throughout Japan, with no way of knowing how long these earthquakes will continue. Some experts have said that there could be strong aftershocks of up to magnitude level 8 for six months. Please pray that the earthquakes will cease.
• Pray also for the buildings that survived the initial shock, but are being hammered by the aftershocks. Many buildings still stand, but were weakened, and because of this strong aftershocks are very dangerous.
• The devastation from the initial earthquake was compounded by heavy tsunami that hammered the east coast. Some towns were entirely obliterated by the tsunami. With the threat of strong aftershocks, the threat of tsunami still loom. Praise God that these tsunami have ceased for the time being. Please pray that the affected areas remain safe from further tsunami.
• Due to the seismic activity, the ground level in much of coastal Japan actually sank, so sea water that came in during the tsunami is not receding. This is hampering relief efforts. Please pray that relief teams will be able to work safely in these areas.
• Pray also for cities such as Uruyasu in Chiba Prefecture, in which sinking land has put many buildings in a precarious situation.
• In the wake of the earthquake, fires raged throughout affected areas. Pray for the victims of these fires and those who have lost their homes.
• Many of those reported missing have not been found, and it is likely that there are many bodies that may never be found, having been swept out to sea. Pray for those who have still heard no word on their loved ones.
• Casualty reports are still coming in. Over 14,949 bodies have been found, and over 9,880 people remain unaccounted for. It is estimated that the death toll could exceed 15,000 in Miyagi prefecture alone. Pray for those who have lost their loved ones in this disaster. (5/11)
• 5,279 people were injured in the earthquake, 124 severely. Please pray for continued healing for the injured. (5/11)
• Hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes in the coastal areas and the area around the Fukushima nuclear power plants. As physical needs are starting to be fulfilled, many of those living in shelters are starting to become accustomed to life there. One of the main challenges, however, is figuring out a long-term solution for these communities. Please pray for them, and all who are having to stay in public shelters.
• Pray for those who are have taken refuge in unofficial shelters. The government and official relief teams do not know about these places to send help. Pray that they can get word out to relief teams and receive the help they need.
• The future is uncertain and grim for those who have lost everything in this disaster. Pray for hope.
• Pray for the injured and the elderly. Many who were already weak before this disaster occurred are finding the stress more than they can handle. Several have died due to the stress alone, and more are dying in shelters because of the shortages. Please pray for continued healing and proper care for this very vulnerable segment of the population.
• Pray for medical and hospice workers who were unable to rescue all of the people under their care. Many of them are struggling with intense feelings of guilt. Pray for God's comfort for them.
• Pray for the restoration of municipal offices and the recovery of the government; many officials are still missing, and many buildings were destroyed in the disaster. Many important records have also been lost in this disaster. Pray for the restoration of order.
• 30 out of 33 designated disaster hospitals are now capable of accepting patients, but overall 20% of hospitals and clinics in the disaster zone are still closed. Please pray for the continued restoration of medical services.
• Pray for those whose homes are still without electricity or running water.
• Pray for SDF forces and other relief workers who have worked so hard in the past few weeks, and seen horrors that no one could be prepared for. Pray for them as they deal with the emotional impact of having to respond to a disaster of this magnitude.
• Many different areas affected by the disaster have different needs, and needs are constantly changing. This leads to confusion with the delivery of supplies. Pray for accurate communication of needs.
• Suicide has been a very serious problem in Japan for years, and with the added horror of this disaster and all its repercussions, many more people in the months and years to come may attempt to end their own lives. Pray for these people, that God would intervene and give them hope.
• Strong aftershocks over magnitude seven are still hitting, and with them come the risk of landslides and house fires, in addition to building collapse and tsunami. Please pray for God’s mercy and protection from strong aftershocks.
• Debris is a problem for those trying to rebuild their lives. Many ports are clogged with debris, and in the disaster zone, debris and rotting material are contaminating the air with bacteria and terrible smells. Debris carried out to see will also present difficulties for other countries bording the Pacific Ocean in the months to come. Please pray for the speedy, safe removal of debris, and for the restoration and rebuilding efforts of those in affected areas.
• Much farmland has been rendered unusable by saltwater. Pray for farmers as they begin the procedures necessary to clean their ground and resume planting.

NUCLEAR CRISIS

• The Nuclear Crisis in Fukushima has, as of Tuesday, April 12th, been raised a Level 7 on the international scale of 1 to 7. Pray for wisdom and strength for those who are struggling to get this situation under control, and for the workers who are risking their lives to prevent this situation from worsening.
• Elevated radiation levels have been detected as far away as Tokyo. To constitute a health risk, these level would have to be hundreds of times higher than they currently are. The Japanese government is taking appropriate measures to protect its people. Please pray for people to be calm and to refrain from overreacting in fear.
• Pray for the young and the unborn. Very young children and babies are at the greatest risk of long-term damage from radiation exposure. Pray that levels will remain low enough not to cause lasting damage for the children.
• Elevated radiation levels have been detected in tap water, vegetables, and milk coming from Fukushima and the surrounding prefectures. The government of Japan has ordered food shipments from these areas to be stopped. The ban on milk has been lifted from 25 municipalities in Fukushima, but in 11 areas the ban is still in place. Please pray for the agricultural industry of northern Japan.
• Pray also for the weather. With radiation being diffused into the air, wind or rain could carry it into populated areas and expose people. Pray that any wind will carry radiation out to sea rather than into populated areas.
• A leak in the first week of April resulted in thousands of gallons of contaminated water being poured into the sea. On April 6, the leak was reportedly plugged. However, cesium beyond the legal limit has been detected in small fish caught off the coast of Ibaraki. Please pray for Japan’s fishing industry.
• As the crisis drags on, experts are predicting that it may take years to resolve the situation. Pray for strength and wisdom.
• As of April 11th, residents within the 30 km radius have been informed that they need to evacuate within the month due to the long-term effects of the radiation. Those whose homes are within the 20 km radius are still stuck in evacuation centers, uncertain when or if they will be able to return home. Pray for everyone who is being affected by the fear and uncertainty of this situation.
• As of April 22nd, the 20 km radius was sealed. Many people will not be able to return to their homes for a very long time. Pray for them to find a place to stay and to be able to deal with the loss of their property and family homes, farms, and businesses.
• Radioactive water is currently being stored, and TEPCO hopes to have a facility to decontaminate the water operational by June. Please pray about the contaminated water from the plants, that there will be no more leaks, and that it can be swiftly decontaminated.

IMPACT ON JAPAN:

• Public transit systems in Tokyo and the surrounding areas are taxed to the limit by this disaster, and the transportation companies are no longer confident that the infrastructure can handle rush hour traffic. Please pray that this transportation situation can be resolved.
• Pray for the Christians of Japan, that we would be able to mobilize relief efforts and provide for people's needs, both physical and spiritual. Pray also for the impact this is having on regular ministries, that Christians would be able to help their neighbors to remain calm, and that we would be able to provide comfort for the grieving.
• Pray for the Japanese economy, for which the outlook was grim even before this disaster. Since the earthquake, massive losses have been posted, and there is no telling what impact this disaster will have on the economy for the long term.
• Many University graduates who had been promised jobs beginning in April are without work because of damaged or completely destroyed companies. In addition to the many other struggles, there are many who are without work now and for the future. Many people’s jobs have also been put in jeopardy by the current crisis. Pray for the unemployed of Japan.
• Pray for Japanese food service companies and farmers, who are finding domestic and international customers reluctant to buy food from Japan out of fear of radiation contamination, regardless of whether they are from affected areas.
• Pray for Japanese companies whose production is severely affected by rolling blackouts. Experts estimate that from the damage to factories and the blackouts affecting undamaged factories, Japan’s total industrial production has decreased by 25%.
• Pray for the South Korean economy and other related economies as well. South Korea’s economy is heavily interconnected with Japan’s, and it is estimated that this disaster and its influence will adversely affect South Korea in the months to come.
• Schools across Japan are starting the new school year, but for many, they have to plan around exams that students were unable to take, records that have been lost, and school buildings that have been ruined or are being used as evacuation centers. Pray for the educators and students of Japan.
• Pray for the tourist industry of Japan. With the current nuclear crisis, nobody wants to come to Japan, and areas that have been economically fueled by tourism are going to suffer heavily.

PRAY FOR THE JAPANESE CHURCH

• Until this catastrophe, the Japanese church has been hampered by strong denominational division and legalism. Since March 11th, we have seen the church here in Japan drawing together as one to respond. Pray that this unity will continue long after the crisis has passed.
• Pray for God to call Japanese Christians into ministry.
• Pray for the Japanese church to persevere. This is a situation that will not be over for a very long time, so pray that Japanese Christians will partner with the needy through every step on the road to recovery.
• Pray for willing hearts among the Japanese, and for Christians to have the boldness to pursue witnessing opportunities.
• Pray for God to provide the resources for Christians to reach out to those who are in need. Pray for compassionate hearts that actively pursue opportunities to help others.
• Pray for the Japanese church to focus on creating disciples. At this time, many Japanese are open to the gospel and may make a decision to follow Christ, but the danger is that Christians may focus on conversions, then leave new converts on their own without focusing on any further spiritual development.
• Pray for Japanese pastors, who often have to balance tradition and the approval of the congregation, and have little energy left to focus on God’s guidance for their churches. Pray for them to be bold in serving God rather than man.
• Pray for Japanese Christians on the fringes who do not attend church or regularly interact with other believers, that God will bring them back into unity and discipleship, so that they can grow in Him and become a powerful force in spreading His love to their friends and neighbors.

PRAY FOR LOVE ON JAPAN | CRASH QUAKE RELIEF

• On Friday, April 1, CRASH hosted a meeting at Aomori University for Japanese churches to learn about CRASH, in the hopes that we can partner largely with the Japanese church in serving the people of Japan. Please pray that the people who came to this meeting will be able to motivate their churches to do everything possible to help and to spread God’s fame throughout Japan.
• Samaritan’s Purse has donated 93 tons of supplies, to be distributed via CRASH’s volunteer network. Pray for CRASH Japan’s teams, that they would be able to distribute the supplies safely, and that they would bless the people receiving them, both physically and spiritually. Pray also for God to continue to supply for the needs of the suffering, and that CRASH Japan workers will have the strength and resources to distribute.
• CRASH has now established five base camps in four prefectures. These base camps will be used by teams from all over Japan to minister to those in heavily affected areas. Pray for the staff at these base camps, that they would have strength and wisdom, and that through these camps God will work in Japan to bring His hope and salvation.
• Pray for relief teams that are on the ground, assessing needs in disaster-struck areas, and providing supplies to evacuees. Pray for their safety and maximum effectiveness in providing relief for the suffering.
• Pray for CRASH Japan to be able to set up an effective, organized infrastructure. Many of CRASH’s workers are volunteers. Pray for these volunteers and for those organizing them, that the teams would work well together and that God would bless our efforts to bring relief and hope to the people of Japan.
• Pray for supplies, especially gasoline.
• Pray for salvation and hope for the people of Japan, and pray that Love on Japan can do its utmost to spread hope and the love of Christ in this difficult time.
• Pray for stamina for all those working relief; for enough rest, for emotional fortitude, and unshakable faith.
• Pray for those of us at the CRASH HQ to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, not losing sight of Him, His glory, and His sovereignty.

PRAISES

• On Saturday, April 16th, shipping was resumed at the seaport in Sendai. Praise God for this progress in the restorative process, and pray that healing continues.
• Praise God for his continued provision and protection for the hundreds of thousands of people in Japan who have been touched by this tragedy. As bad as this is, we acknowledge that things could have been much worse, so we praise God that so many have survived, and that so many are safe.
• The news focuses on the many, many horrible things that have happened in this tragedy, and we are heartbroken, but we praise God for the amazing stories of survival and reunion that have been coming out of Tohoku since the day of the disaster. The lives of many have been spared, and as people continue to be reunited with loved ones for whom they feared the worst, we praise God for even the smallest of blessings.
• We praise God for the love and support that has poured in from all over the world since this nightmare began. Truly, God is blessing Japan through His people all over the world, and we are humbled, touched, and overwhelmed by the love we have been shown.
• We praise God for the organization and fortitude of our friends and neighbors. The Japanese people are bearing this tragedy with impressive discipline and sacrifice, and we praise God for the respectfulness and mutual concern native to this culture which has led the people of Japan to act with swiftness and dedication to help their countrymen.
• God is bringing people together from all over the world to help Japan, both with her physical needs, and her spiritual needs. God is on the move in Japan.
• The wind is helping to minimize airborne exposure since the earthquake, as winds from the northwest have blown many emissions from the plant out to sea.
• On April 6, TEPCO was able to stop a leak that was pouring large amounts of contaminated water into the sea. Praise God for this success, and pray that no further leaks will occur.
• Many of the places experiencing shortages have had their needs supplied, and gasoline shortages are no longer a problem. Praise God for his provision, and continue to pray for those who are still without homes and supplies.(5/11)

Last updated: 5/11

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Prayer For Japan

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Public Duty Before Personal Worries

For some, the well-trained response by this quake-prone land was something to be proud of in a weekend of humbling setbacks. Even before the government mobilized Japan's Self-Defense Forces, local groups such as volunteer firefighters were hard at work. Riot police managed the Shimo Yahagi school morgue, and police from Osaka 450 miles away, worked in Rikuzentakata itself — many volunteers were putting public duty before personal worries.

On an approach road to the city, Kenichi Onodera was waving a flag to control traffic amid aftershocks and additional tsunami warnings Sunday.

"My relatives live near the sea, and I really want to look for them, but I have to serve here," said Onodera, 51, a volunteer firefighter who works at a chicken farm.

He worried about residents who had moved to appointed evacuation zones, which are common in Japan, soon after the first tsunami alert. Later came calls to move to even higher ground, but for many they came too late.

"The tsunami was too big, it washed out those evacuation centers with the people," Onodera said.

"My legs were shaking when I saw the aftermath" of the tsunami, he said, "but we must keep on living. People will return to live here again."

Kawai Saiichi, 58, said he was driving his forklift truck, moving crates of sake bottles in the warehouse of Rikuzentakata's Drunken Immortals sake brewery, when his cellphone buzzed with an earthquake warning. At the very same time, bottles of the Japanese rice wine and roof tiles were crashing to the ground.

"It seemed like I was riding on a wave," he said.

He ran to his car and drove 12 miles to rescue his 90-year-old mother. He got her into the car and as they were driving to an emergency shelter they stopped on a hilltop road above the city. There they watched aghast as the tsunami claimed their town.

"There's a 20-foot breaker wall, but the tsunami came 6 feet over it," Saiichi said.

As a community leader responsible for 80 households, he went door-to-door to alert mostly elderly residents and to drive several of them to the shelter.

"We have earthquake drills, and we know what to do," Saiichi said. His own future is less certain: "I don't have a house, any money, and all my assets. All I have is what I'm wearing now — and my car."

Personal Stories

As enormous as the disaster looked on TV, the tragedy can be broken down to thousands of more poignant stories. In Rikuzentakata, Etsuko Koyama escaped the water rushing through the third floor of her home, but lost her grip on her young daughter's hand and has not found her.

"I haven't given up hope yet," Koyama told public broadcaster NHK, wiping tears from her eyes. "I saved myself, but I couldn't save my daughter."

Ayumi Osuga, 24, said she had been practicing origami, the Japanese art of folding paper into figures, with her three children when the quake stuck. She gathered her children — age 2 to 6 — and fled to higher ground with her husband. They spent the night in a hilltop home belonging to relatives.

"I have come to realize what is important in life," Osuga said, flicking ashes from a cigarette onto the rubble at her feet as a giant column of black smoke billowed in the distance.

As night fell and temperatures dropped to freezing in Sendai, people who had slept under overpasses or in offices the past two nights gathered for warmth in community centers, schools and City Hall.

At a large refinery on the outskirts of the city, 100-foot-high bright orange flames rose in the air, spitting out dark plumes of smoke. The facility has been burning since Friday. A gaseous stench hung in the air.

In the small nearby town of Tagajo, dazed residents said the water surged in and quickly rose higher than the first floor of buildings. At Sengen General Hospital, the staff worked to haul bedridden patients up the stairs one at a time. With the halls now dark, those who can leave have gone to the local community center.

"There is still no water or power, and we've got some very sick people in here," hospital official Ikuro Matsumoto said.

It took Shinichirou Uto 24 hours to drive from Tokyo to survey the damage at a wrecked Lawson convenience store in Rikuzentakata. Founded in Ohio, the franchise chain is tackling blackouts in 1,300 stores, said Uto, Lawson's director of construction planning.

"We don't know yet if we will rebuild, but we are gathering donations at other stores, and providing water,"

News Story

Japan Tsunami Survivors Found

Elderly woman and teenage grandson found alive among ruins of their home in Ishinomaki

                       

Nine days after they were believed killed by the tsunami, an elderly woman and her teenage grandson were found alive in the rubble of their home in north-east Japan on Sunday. The 80-year-old and the boy survived by eating yoghurt and other scraps of food salvaged from a refrigerator after being trapped in Ishinomaki, one of the worst-hit coastal cities.

They were found by police when 16-year-old Jin Abe called for help from the roof of their residence. He had been trapped for a week and finally managed to pull himself through a hole in the debris and alert rescue workers.

His grandmother, Sumi Abe, was unable to free herself because her legs were caught under furniture. When she was found, she was shaking and had a low temperature, but was conscious and able to answer questions coherently. Jin had lost feeling in one of his legs and showed symptoms of hypothermia. The survivors have endured a snowstorm and freezing temperatures without electricity or heating.

Amid widespread jubilation, the national broadcaster NHK ran images of a helicopter winching the survivors out of danger in a yellow harness. They are both now receiving medical treatment in the Ishinomaki Red Cross hospital.

"I always believed he was alive," Jin's father told reporters.

The astonishing rescue has given a much-needed boost to emergency workers amid a grim and growing death toll from Japan's deadliest disaster since the second world war. The casualty list stands at 8,277 dead and 12,722 missing and the figures are rising daily.

The situation at the evacuation shelters – where more than 400,000 homeless people have sought refuge – has improved, but it remains inadequate and vastly different from place to place.

At Ishinomaki, the situation remains tough. "Some of us are still just eating one meal a day," said Yoshinori Sato, the secretary of the municipal press office. "Assistance is coming, but it is two or three days behind other areas."

Further up the coast, however, the town of Onnagawa, which was flattened by the tsunami, is receiving more than adequate aid.

“We have enough food and blankets and a surplus of kerosene for heating," said Hironori Suzuki, the chief of the planning department. "The priority now is baths. People have been in shelters for 10 days without proper sanitation. Baths would make a big difference."

Similar views were expressed at the local hospital, where the office manager Toshihiko Abe said the emergency medical needs have largely been met.

"We probably have all we need in terms of material goods. Now the next stage is to rebuild infrastructure and to address the psychological needs of the displaced people, They have lost their homes and their histories, which leads to anxiety. This is something we need to address," he said.

New elemental challenges continue to plague the recovery effort. The sea returned to the streets of northern Japan on Sunday, although this time it was a creeping high tide rather than a surging tsunami that caused the damage. Homes and roads were flooded by the rising waters, which bubbled up through sewers and drains. Cars and trucks had to turn back from inundated routes in Ishinomaki and Samada. Locals, whose homes had survived the seismic disaster, were faced with a fresh crisis as the waters flooded through their property.

While the high tide posed no immediate threat to life, it could prove a longer term worry because it shows how the coastline has been permanently and dramatically shifted by last week's massive, magnitude nine earthquake.

"It's just one thing after another, but there is nothing we can do. The earthquake drove the coastline down by 75 centimetres and today is the high tide so we cannot stop the water," said Yoshinori Abe as he splashed through the flooded streets.

News Story

Disaster in Japan: Man is rescued 10 miles out to sea

This is the remarkable moment a tsunami survivor was rescued from the roof of his house - which had been swept 10 miles out to sea.

Terrified Hiromitsu Shinkawa, 60, spent two days adrift in the ocean after monstrous waves engulfed the town where he lived. He tried desperately to attract the attention of helicopters and passing ships - but nobody saw him.

Rescuers eventually spotted him clinging to a piece of roof from his destroyed two-bedroom home, waving a home-made red flag. He was plucked to safety yesterday by Japan's maritime self-defense force and quickly hugged his rescuers. The retired construction worker was taken to hospital and later gave medics a dramatic account of his miraculous rescue.

Hiromitsu, from the devastated town of Minamisoma, said: "I ran away after learning that the tsunami was coming. But I turned back to pick up something at home and was washed away. I was rescued while I was hanging to the roof from my house. I was saved by holding on to the roof, but my wife was swept away." When handed a bottle of water, Hiromitsu drank it before bursting into tears.

He told medics: "No helicopters or boats that came nearby noticed me. I thought today was the last day of my life."

His dramatic rescue was a rare glimpse of good news following Friday's mammoth quake. 

News story

Miracles in Japan: Four-Month-Old Baby Found Alive

Amid the silent corpses a baby cried out—and Japan met its tiniest miracle.

On March 14, soldiers from Japan's Self-Defense Forces went door to door in Ishinomaki, a coastal town northeast of Senda, pulling bodies from homes that had been flattened by the earthquake and tsunami. More accustomed to hearing the crunching of rubble and the sloshing of mud than sounds of life, they dismissed the baby's cry as a mistake. Until they heard it again.

They made their way to a pile of debris and carefully removed fragments of wood and slate, shattered glass and rock. And then they saw her: a 4-month-old baby girl in a pink woolen bear suit.

A tidal wave literally swept the baby from her parents' arms when it hit their home on March 11. Afterward, her parents — both of whom survived the disaster — took refuge in their wrecked house, worried that their little girl was dead. Soldiers managed to reunite the baby with her overjoyed father shortly after the rescue.

"Her discovery has put a new energy into the search," a civil defense official told a local news crew. "We will listen, look and dig with even more diligence after this."

Ahead of the baby's rescue, officials reported finding at least 2,000 bodies washed up on the shoreline of Miyagi prefecture. How the child survived drowning — or being crushed by fallen trees and houses — remains a mystery.

In a nation short on good news, other rescues have buoyed morale too. In Iwate prefecture, a devastating tidal wave swept away an elderly woman along with her house — but it didn't extinguish her will to live. Rescuers found the 70-year-old alive inside her home on March 15, four days after the wave wiped out much of the region.

Osaka fire department spokesman Yuko Kotani told the Associated Press that the woman is receiving treatment at a local hospital. She is conscious but suffering from hypothermia.

News story

Operation Safe: Healing for Tohoku’s Children

Tokyo, Japan- March 25, 2011 – After a traumatic experience like the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, anxiety disorders that create prolonged psychological trauma can become common among survivors, especially children. Symptoms of these anxiety disorders, like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), include re-experiencing, avoidance and hyper emotional arousal. For children, these symptoms can also include fear of separation from loved ones, anger or aggression and re-enactments of the trauma experience through play.

CRASH Japan is establishing Operation SAFE – a child-friendly space for children to come and begin the healing process. Crafts, songs, stories and games are made available and used by experienced Christian volunteers who help the children deal with the difficult emotions they are facing through Operation SAFE’s five important principles, including “I am Not Alone,” “Be Strong and Courageous” and “You are Loved.”

“These campgrounds are an oasis of peace and shelter,” said CRASH Japan director and founder of

Operation SAFE, Jonathan Wilson. “In these child-friendly spaces, children can receive child-appropriate trauma care through the Operation SAFE program.”

CRASH Japan is currently in discussion with other child-focused relief teams to implement Operation SAFE throughout the Tohoku area to bring hope and healing to Japan’s children. For more information about Operation SAFE, please visit opsafeintl.com

Operation Safe

Facebook Posting Outfits Two Baseball Teams

by David Sedlacek

On March 11, 2011, 25 of the 30 members of a Little League baseball team in Onagawa, Japan lost their homes to the tsunami. But not only their homes―their baseball equipment was washed away as well.

In the nearby town of Rifu, a friend of one of the team's baseball coaches called Oasis Chapel for help. Could the church replace the team's baseball bats and gloves? Pastor Makito Matsuda posted the need on Facebook. 

Pastor Matsuda had a new Facebook friend―CRASH volunteer Yoshi Ehara, who had worked out the arrangements to lease Camp Morigo from Oasis Chapel to serve as CRASH's Sendai area base.

Ehara saw the need posted for baseball equipment, and emailed me to ask if we could do something about it. The CRASH Logistics Department was extremely busy―coordinating container shipments of relief supplies, arranging vehicle rentals, obtaining a warehouse, etc.―but this was a specific request we definitely wanted to do something about.

We started looking around Tokyo for baseball equipment to supply two baseball teams. Soon we found a sports outlet that was willing to give a huge discount on the basic supplies―10 bats, 50 balls, three large boxes of gloves, even all the catcher’s needs. But not only that... they donated additional equipment that they would ship up later for free.

So on Thursday, April 14, we loaded five boxes of baseball equipment into my car to take to Sendai. When we arrived at Camp Morigo, we met Pastor Matsuda and passed the equipment on to him. I chose to add a special personal gift for the coach―my 2010 World Series edition Texas Rangers hat. With that, our job was done. We had worked through the Church in Tohoku to bring help and hope to the people of Tohoku.

Two days later, on April 16, the coach of the Little League team in Onagawa came to Oasis Chapel to receive the equipment. He had only asked for gloves and bats, but was delighted to get far more than he had imagined.

The coach believes these children who lost so much will benefit from being able to play baseball again. What provision, that a church in their neighborhood could bring them this joy!

Facebook Posting Outfits Two Baseball Teams

Story of Mika Takana

Mika Takana was cooking in her second-floor Sendai apartment when the earthquake struck. As everything started shaking and falling, she remembers some things vividly.

She watched a 31-story downtown building swaying and saw the communications tower on its roof fall over. She saw the power poles swaying and the power lines moving like jump ropes. But mainly she remembers a strange sound – the buildings around her were literally groaning and crying.

“It was a strange sound that I’ve never heard in my life. The buildings were moving so hard, they were making a sound like crying,” she said.

Mika ran out of her apartment, without shoes. “Next time, I will take shoes,” she said with a smile. 
She wound up in a nearby cold, dark school gym with 1,000 others, including tourists who had just arrived from Europe. The earthquakes continued, she said, with about two days of seemingly continuous shaking. “We were always afraid the next one would be even bigger,” she said.

The cheerful, outgoing Mika, a well-known Christian musician and worship leader, immediately began making friends and reaching out to others in the makeshift evacuation center. She was able to return to her apartment sooner than the others, so she went back and brought her blankets and pillows to others who had none.

She even began volunteering at the center, helping prepare food for her fellow evacuees with whom she had occupied a cold, dark gym floor.  As she has reached out with the tangible love of Jesus, some of her fellow shelter dwellers have already become close friends, including Chie Nakajima. Chie said that as her apartment rattled, she believes she heard a voice telling her to move out of the center of the room. So she grabbed her husband and moved against the wall, just as the ceiling collapsed where they had been standing.

Three weeks after the earthquake, Mika is still opening her electric-powered home so that her new friends who lack gas can have a hot shower.

“Mika is a great example of how people can show the love of Christ no matter how difficult the situation,” said Paul Nethercott of CRASH.