As most of us have now heard, Japan has experienced one of the worst earthquakes in recorded history today. The earthquake started at about 2:45 PM in Japan, or 5:45 UTC, and was recorded as an 8.9 magnitude on the moment magnitude scale. This is the largest recorded earthquake in Japanese history, and the seventh largest ever recorded in the world.The quake hit about 81 miles (130 km) east of Sendai, Japan. The massive quake then triggered a series of tsunami warnings for not only Japan, but also Hawaii, Australia, the western South American coastline, and much of the northwest American coastline. The tsunami has not yet reached South America, but Hawaii and the western US coast were hit very mildly this morning, mostly just soaking the beaches and providing some memorable waves for brave surfers.
The most detrimental of the tsunami’s hit the northeast coast of Japan, and so far there have been close to 300 deaths with another 400 confirmed missing, and the hardest hit areas still haven’t even been accessed by rescue workers yet. The waves in this region were up to 30 feet high and tore through Sendai and surrounding areas, causing a still unknown amount of damage to one of the largest cities in Japan.
Though the extent of damage is still unknown, it is clear that the country will certainly need all the help it can get in the wake of this tragedy. Thankfully, many countries leaders have already stepped-up and promised any help they could given in the recovery process, including the US, UK, China, Germany, South Korea and many others. The UN has also said that 30 search and rescue teams are on standby for whenever Japan needs them. Google has also launched a Person Finder site to assist those looking for family members and friends.For those of you looking to help, there are many funds quickly being started, but the best way is to text RedCross to 90999 to make an automatic $10 donation which will appear on your next phone bill.
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