Town of Ikata

Ikata was unharmed by the events of this past weekend, March 11-13.

The earthquake that shook northeastern Honshu on Friday, the largest in recorded history at a magnitude of 9.0, brought untold devastation to Japan’s northeast region. It was felt in Tokyo and in Yamanashi Prefecture (where Mount Fuji is located), and much lighter tremors were felt as far south as the Kansai region (where Osaka and Kyoto are located). We felt no tremors here in Ikata.

Around 4pm on Friday, emergency sirens went off, and a public service announcement asked everyone on the coast to evacuate to their local designated evacuation spots. In Ikata, some 3,500 coastal households were affected.

The tsunami that had wreaked such devastation in the northeast was considerably weaker by the time it reached Ikata. At 5:10 pm it came, measuring about 80cm or 2.6 feet. Later that night, most of the evacuees returned home.

Coverage of the events in the northeast continued throughout the weekend and is still ongoing.
We are touched by the concern shown by so many of our friends in Red Wing.
If you feel moved to donate, there are a number of aid organizations mobilized to help the victims of the disaster.