Catastrophe, devastation

Few events highlight the helplessness of man than that of an earthquake. And a 9.0 intensity tremor proves it in merciless fashion!

Friday, March 11/11, Northeastern Japan . The fifth strongest earthquake in recorded history strikes 130 kilometers off the Sendai coast, violently shaking the region, causing massive destruction for miles inland. But that isn’t the end of it.

A tsunami, triggered by the offshore quake, travels at the speed of a commercial airline and hammers the Miyagi prefecture. Like a giant, malevolent organism, it hammers the coastline and creeps inland, devouring everything in its path. And when it was done, all that was left were the remains of its destructive appetite. Property lost, lives turned upside down. A true hell-on-earth scenario!

Indeed, the tsunami may have caused more damage than the tremor itself, as tsunami warnings were raised all over the Pacific rim, with waves reaching as far as Chile!

How do you stop a wall of water traveling as fast as an airplane? Even with Japan being the most prepared nation in terms of earthquakes and tsunamis, the March 11 catastrophe brought the nation to its knees. And it isn’t over by a long shot.

The one-two punch from nature severely compromised the Fukushima nuclear power plant located in the region. Structural damage caused by the earthquake was followed by failing cooling systems caused by the tsunami. Explosions and fires have ensued, causing a frantic effort to cool down exposed reactor rods and preventing the all too dreaded meltdown. But setback after setback have raised the nuclear threat level to five. That’s two less than Chernobyl , the worst nuclear disaster of them all!

 Compounding things even more, there is now evidence of food contaminated by radiation within the immediate area of the plant, confirming fears that radiation is indeed leaking from the stricken reactors. A nuclear wasteland in northeastern Japan was slowly becoming a possibility!

But if there is a country that can handle these kind of catastrophes, even multiple ones, that would definitely be Japan.

Three days after the earthquake, the Bank of Japan immediately pumps over one hundred billion dollars into money markets to stabilize their economy, the third largest in the world.

Work is constant on the Fukushima nuclear power plant, with the “faceless 50” leading the charge. Workers who know the risks of their proximity to the nuclear reactors, continue to frantically take control of the situation. And with unparalleled discipline in their veins, the Japanese will most definitely recover from the big one. I’m certain of it.

We should learn lessons on how the Japanese handle disasters. After all, they are the only country hit by an atomic bomb, twice, and recovered, even progressed to heights most countries, even ours, can only dream of attaining. The road to recovery ahead is long and bumpy, according to one official, but they will get there.

Let’s hope so.