First hand story from Tokyo, Japan

Hey everyone,
I apologize for making another thread on the Japan disaster. I know there's already enough out here on this site.

I am currently living in Japan, in Kawasaki city, but very close to Tokyo (within 15min by train). I experienced the major earthquake first hand. The areas in and around Tokyo were not affected too badly, when compared to the places up north. I haven't noticed any major damage to homes and buildings.
Food is pretty hard to get, especially food that doesn't need to be refrigerated, because of ongoing blackouts.
I used to go to an international school here, so my family knows a lot of foreigners that live here in Japan. These people tend to be pretty wealthy, and I've noticed that at first signs of a disaster, these people are the first to evacuate out of Japan. The local Japanese people seem to be more calm, and think about their fellow people, trying to help each other as much as possible. It's kind of a comforting feeling. Even though there was a crisis, and still a risk of more to come, I feel somewhat safe with these people. I know i would be a lot more scared if this kind of thing happened in America and i was in that situation.
I'm sure you guys have already read a bunch of stories of how helpful the japanese are to each other, so I won't keep going on about that.
I'm currently working at Gap here in Tokyo, and the schedule has been strange, due to the blackouts and train schedules, but i did work there the day after the major quake, and what really surprised me is that some people seem like they were unaffected by the quake. I could swear there was more people shopping for clothes then they usually would on a sunday. That was one thing that kind of made me mad. I mean, a lot of places are closed due to the quakes, but there is still a significant amount of places that try and do as much business as possible, with the time they have. I just couldn't get how people could be out shopping for clothes like it was a normal day, instead of getting supplies and being with their families.
We are still feeling the effects of this disaster, and I'm sure they will continue to come for at least a month. The international schools have been cancelled til at least the 28th, and they say blackout may continue until april.
I was going to work a few days ago and the station was so packed that they wouldn't let people in. There must have been at least 250-300 people waiting to get on the train. I waited for 2 hours and the numbers just kept growing. I finally gave up and went home with my mom, who was waiting for the trains as well. I have a few pictures, and will post them if anyone is interested.
I have been monitoring a live feed of a geiger counter in Tokyo. Two days ago, there was a spike in the readings going up to around 45 CPM, but it was only temporary and seems like it is going back to normal. I just checked the readings today and its back to around 13CPM, so i think we are relavtively safe for now.
My family has stocked up on some food and water, and a few other supplies. There have been on going quakes. Some still fairly large, I'd say around a M4 in our area. I think the worst thing is just worrying about another big quake hitting, and not knowing when it's going to come. I just try not to think about it, but it's good to be aware and on high alert.
Anyway, that's my side of the story. I think my family has decided to stay put and see what happens. Things look like they are settling down, and i hope that the worst part is over. I will keep you guys updated if anything new happens, and feel free to ask me any questions. I will try to answer them to the best of my ability.
There will be a blackout in my area from 6PM-10PM (Japan time) so I will try to reply to posts after that time.
Thanks for reading,
Bulletproof_monk

Thanks very much for posting. Glad to hear you and your family are all right for now, and hope that holds. Keep us updated if you can -- news is pretty sparse right now, and the quiet is starting to be alarming.

reply to post by bulletproof_monk

Good luck to you. Hope things only get better, and not the other way. Also, hope the food supply improves.
Stay safe.

reply to post by sepermeru


Yeah, we were really lucky as things could have been much worse.
I will try and update you if anything new comes up, but it's quieting down like you said. It was stressing having bad news coming each day. It seemed like things just kept getting worse and worse. I'm glad that it seems like the worst part is over, but We are still trying to stay prepared and alert. I know that we will be feeling the effects of this disaster for weeks to come, if not months

reply to post by BrokenCircles


Thanks.
Yeah, I think the food supply thing is just people panicking and getting as much food/water/supplies as they can just in case. I heard from a friend of mine (his family owns a restaurant) that shipments of food are going out to stores and restaurants as usual, so I'm guessing it will go back to normal within the next few days.

Thanks so much for posting. I certainly hope no one comes along and destroys this thread as well. We are lucky we have people there giving us a true insight to what is going on. Im sure you know our prayers are with you and any pictures would be great if you would like to share them.

reply to post by bulletproof_monk
Thank you so much and you sound like a very brave young man, and the people of Japan have shown such great dignity in the worest situation. They are very humble people and that is a sign of Grace. Our prays are with you all.

Thank you for posting. Can you please keep us updated with things there ? Your information helps much.

Thanks mate ... keep it up with info

May god/Allah/Buddah or whoever you pray to be with you monk. We appreciate your time to bother with ATS under such difficult and testing times. Im not sure what pictures of the packed out metro would prove/solve though, but any photos you may think of interest then please post them up for us all. cheerz chaz

Cleveland Ohio checking in. My thoughts and prayers are with the people of Japan and all those affected by this disaster. I cannot help from here except for financially , but I will send you all my good power. Thanks for the post and wishing you all the best luck Japan.

So glad to hear you are ok

Can you tell me if people in your area or in unaffected areas are offering to take in displaced family's?

Thank you for your posts.

To the OP; the shopping for clothes could have been a symptom of shock and just carrying on as normal until it really sunk in OR maybe people felt the need to stock up on clothes in case the supply line was disrupted in the future ? Who knows ? I suspect they were numb and just went about their day-to-day habits until the images and full story became truly apparent.

Anyway, Glad to hear your own personal experience and sending my strength to you all at this difficult time.

reply to post by onehuman


Thanks. Well, like i said, there isn't much visible damage around my area. The only photos i have is of a packed train station, so nothing really too interesting. I will upload them soon to add to the thread though.
I have noticed that TV is going back to normal. It's kind of crazy how some channels are going back to comedy shows. It kind of makes me mad that they can broadcast shows like that in a time liek this.
I think the Gov is trying to divert our attention away from the topics that really matter. The news that is showing is basically just showing the same things they have been for the past couple days. It seems like that radiation is really bad though. I personally have not felt or seen anyone else showing symptoms of radiation poisoning, but I am getting worried. The gov is just telling people to stay inside, so it must be pretty bad.
they have released a map showing radiation levels in different prefectures.
Here's the link:
www.targetmap.com...
Isn't it a coincidence that fukushima, the prefecture with thte worst levels of radiation is "under survey"? Looks like a cover up right there. They also havent reported the amounts in Tokyo, which is densely populated and would cause mass panic if the levels were deadly

reply to post by Expat888


Okay, well the past few days I have been doing as much research as I can, because this could be a life or death situation. I try and stay updated witht the gieger counter readings of tokyo. currently, I am using a live feed. the link is here: www.ustream.tv...

Right now, levels don't seem to be too high, but I'm staying on high alert. I just got a call from work, and they say they will be closed until the 23rd of this month. It seems pretty serious considering they were open the day after the major quake. My parents still are working and they say that streets are pretty empty and most stores have been closed for the past few days. I think people are just scared and are preparing for something to hit.
I feel as if the gov is hiding things from everyone, and they seem to be keeping people afraid of things that may be coming. For example, for the past 3 or 4 days the news keeps reporting that there will be a 3-4 hour blackout in our area. So far there has not been any blackouts besides the one that occured after the quake. I am only speaking for my area (kawasaki City) I do not know if blackout have occurred in other areas.
I have been listening to the Alex Jones show recently because it is a good alternative news source and according to his research, I believe the 4th reactor was storing thousands of used rods on the 2nd floor and the explosion just shot all those radioactive rods in the air, contaminating everything that they touched.
Here's a source: www.news.com.... au/world/japan-earthquake-new-explosion-rocks-fukushima-nuclear-power-plant/story-e6frfkyi-1226022945686
It looks like the attempts to cool the exposed fuel rods are all failing.
I am not watching the Japanese news anymore. Most of the info I am getting is from the internet.
If any of you would like a clearer insight on what's going on, I suggest going to alex jones' youtube channel and watching his most recent videos. I usually don't watch alex jones much, but at a time like this, he really does his research and has many guests with helpful knowledge.
I will post some more news if something else comes up

reply to post by bulletproof_monk


Being a member of ATS and no doubt been exposed to disaster scenarios and threads about survival I wonder....
Did you have a B.O.B.??
Did you have any stocked food for emergencies?
Extra water just in case?

I would like to hear about people who were somewhat prepared to the extent that they could be.
Did this catch you and your family totally off gaurd?

reply to post by chaztekno


Yeah, like I said, there was no major damage around in my area, I would take some pictures if there was anything interesting to photograph, but looking around all seems normal. Just the number of people on the streets is thinning out, and stores are closing. The food in supermarkets seems like it's settling down a bit. There is still more buying than usual, and most stores are actually regulating how much of certain items a customer can buy.
My mom went to the market the other day and they only sold one roll of toilet paper per customer. I believe they are doing the same thing with food/water, but i am not 100% sure

reply to post by dntwastetime


Thank you for donating to all the people in need over here. I really do not need help atm. I'm doing pretty well considering what's been going on. The people that need help are the ones up north, without homes and heat who have to live outside when it's snowing in the freezing cold.

reply to post by Lansky


Well, like i said, there has been no major damage to my surrounding area, and i think the majority of people here have been unhurt and are safe. If you are asking if they are offering their homes to the people who live up north, then no, not that I have heard of. You have to keep in mind that Tokyo is densely populated and most people live in crammed apartments as it is. There is also risk of an earthquake hitting our area (or so the MSM says)
It seems they are keeping people afraid of risks of blackouts and earthquakes that would affect Tokyo and surrounding cities greatly.
I have to say that tokyo would be a disaster if struck by a large earthquake. It is probably one of the worst places for an earthquake to hit. I live in a crammed neighborhood, on a large hill. There is no open area to go to to protect you from a large quake. There is only one narrow street as an eascape route from my house, and it is filled with power lines overhead. I am sure many neighborhoods are similar to mine, and it is very dangerous if a M7< were to hit Tokyo

reply to post by slidingdoor


Yeah, that sounds about right. They probably were in shock. Many people just seems like everything was normal and it was just like any other day. It looks like things are finally sinking in, and people are staying inside for the most part and being careful