International Ministries

March 22 Update on Japan

March 21, 2011 Journal
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Received Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Now the number of the dead is more than 9,000 and more than 12,000 missing.  

More than 360,000 people are still staying in temporary evacuation places.
 
More than 180,000 houses were washed away or got seriously damaged.
 
They need medicines, foods, waters and many other things in the evacuation places.

I was shocked when I found this information. After the M9 mega earthquake hit Japan, it was followed by another at M7.7 right after.  Then one that same day 153 stronger than M5 earthquake hit Japan.  From the first day, many earthquakes and aftershocks hit Japan.  But the number of aftershocks each day came down to 13 on March 16.  Yesterday we had three M5 aftershocks, and today we’ve had two.

The situation at Fukushima atomic power plant is not getting better though many people have been trying to cool it down.  The result of a medical check of 184 people who have been trying to cool the core of Fukushima is that all are safe.  (166 of Tokyo Elecric Power Company workers, 5 of Self-Defense Forces Personnel, and 13 of Tokyo Riot Police Officers)  They are the ones who went closest to the core.  Some of them, especially TEPCO workers, are still working there to try to stop the atomic power plant safely.

Because of your prayers, all of them were protected. These people are taking risk of their life. Please continue to pray for them.

One of the Self-Defense Forces Personnel’s wife sent him a text message when she was informed that her husband would be sent to Fukushima atomic power plant to do a special mission there.  She wrote to her husband that he is a hero of Japan.

The police officer answered to the media interview that he did not tell his family that he was appointed to go to Fukushima to do a special mission there.  He thought if he had told his wife and his children, they would be worrying about him too much.

Those people took a big risk of their life and tried to keep atomic power plant in a safe zone.  There are still many people are fighting against this problem and the situation is still dangerous one.  So, please continue to pray for those people who are working hard at Fukushima Atomic Power Plant.

People are getting more serious about the radiation rate.  Yes, it is higher than "normal" but it is not yet reaching the very dangerous zone.  It was reported that they found 161 micro sievert of the radiation at the 20 km point from Fukushima Atomic Power Plant.  It is 1,600 times higher than the normal radiation rate.  When I heard that, I started worrying about it.  So, I checked it and found out that if the rate goes up to 2,000,000 micro sievert, the risk will go up that one person out of twenty may die (5% of chance of being killed by radiation).  It means 161 micro sievert is no need to be afraid of.

However, it will depend on whether they can cool the core of the atomic power plant.  If something happens, it would be a serious problem for sure.
 
So, please do not stop praying for Japan.  We still need your prayer support.

My brother wrote to me that earthquakes keep shaking Japan.  It was reported more than 700 earthquakes (including minor ones) after 9 days of the first M9 earthquake and many specialists are pointing and warning the high chance of having another mega earthquake within 3 months. 

When my brother was helping my parents to clean their house last Sunday afternoon, another big earthquake was there. My father's office upstairs is no hope to clean by themselves.  Their piano also moved and made damage to the wall behind it.

 
Eiji

 

Eiji and Emi Osato are Japanese missionaries working in Thailand, sent by the Japan Baptist Union (JBU).

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