Day 3 After the Earthquake

I am writing this blog entry in the hopes of keeping you all informed while I try to distract myself.

There were no classes today because my school had scheduled meetings to talk about the entrance exams for incoming students. So while I didn’t have to teach, I did have to come in. Around 9am we were hit with another large aftershock which measured M6.2 and I was instructed not to leave the staff room in case there were other, bigger, aftershocks to come.

We have a TV set up in the staff room that is following all the latest news. I can’t understand what is being said but I can see all the scary pictures and ask about what is happening if I feel like freaking myself out. The Number One power plant in Fukuoka seems to have had a second explosion and is informing people that there is nothing to worry about. I just hope that my impending super power is cool and not lame like Aquaman’s.

The prefecture is currently deciding whether or not to have students attend school tomorrow as all JR trains have been cancelled and we are bracing for another quake of M7.0, or higher, to strike in the next few days.

The grocery stores here are all sold out of ready-to-eat foods like bread, bentos and ramen and even though everyone has frayed nerves and is worried about loved ones there has been no looting or mass hysteria in the streets. That goes for the worst hit areas as well. Everyone is pitching in and helping those around them. I can only hope that Canada would react in such a calm and courteous manner if we were faced with a similar disaster. The world could learn a lot by watching how Japan pulls together during its hour of need.