To Everyone Who Has Worked with Our Friends in Iwaki…

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3.16.2011

Iwaki is a seaside town in the Fukujima Prefecture in Japan.  Last Friday, on March 11, Iwaki was struck by the Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami, and is now under the threat of multiple nuclear reactor meltdowns. The radiation leaks due to the hydrogen explosion have driven all residents of Fukujima Prefecture to flee to other parts of Japan, if they were lucky enough to survive the initial impact.

Today, on the fifth day after the devastating catastrophe, the studio finally spoke to Mr. Shiga Tadashige 志賀忠重さん on the phone. He and his family have safely arrived in the Chiba Prefecture, located in the Greater Tokyo Area. His house in Iwaki was destroyed during the earthquake, and the town is now a restricted zone. He has just heard from the rest of our friends from Iwaki, Mr. Fujita Chuhei 藤田忠平さん, Mr. Maki Takashige 真木孝成さん, Mr. Ono Kazuo 小野一夫さん, Mr. Kanno Yoshio 菅野佳男さん, Mr. Shiga Takemi 志賀武美さん, and Mr. Nawa Makoto 名和 良さん, who are now all spread across the country after the evacuation. Fortunately, they are all safe and unharmed. Cai invited Mr. Shiga to stay in his hometown, Quanzhou, China for the time being, to which Mr. Shiga replied that he regretted he left his passport behind amidst the chaos and panic.

This is the latest news we have heard this morning, and if we have any more updates regarding our friends in Japan, we will let everyone know. Hopefully the radiation issues will soon be under control and resolved, and our friends will be able to return home and start to rebuild their lives. Thank you for all of you who have voiced your concerns about our friends from Iwaki.