At its peak, several hundreds of people were living in this gymnasium. It is now being cleared up ready for closure.

As of October 11, 7 months since the disaster, all evacuation centres of Ishinomaki City have been closed. While some of these have been renamed as “waiting centres” for residents awaiting repairs tot heir homes and so on. Yet the gym here at the Hebita Junior High School is being closed, and volunteers have been working to assist people moving in to temporary housing and providing the last meals to residents.

One of these volunteers as AD Kitamura Kazumi, who has long been supporting the food provision and self-sufficiency programmes, working in close cooperation with local residents. “At first it was quite difficult, and not smooth to have conversations”, she says. However through trial and error over the past several months, a strong relationship of trust was build – now so much that she is even personally helping them move into their houses.

Carrying luggage from the gymnasium upon arrival to the temporary housing.

Once the move was finished and they were saying goodbye, he said, “Thanks for everything until now. We’ll also do our best to be able to start once again with a smile!”
This was really a moment to highlight that this was not the end, but only the beginning.

This photograph was taken with the final evacuation centre residents just before saying boodbye.

This day was also the final day of the temporary public baths.
Peace Boat had been involved in running “Fudou no yu” in Fudoucho and “Kizuna no yu” in the car park of Ai Plaza in Tachiyama, as well as “Kibou no yu” at the Minato Primary School.

“Kizuna no Yu” was scheduled to be taken apart the following day.

We will no longer be able to see the smiles of people as they come through the curtain at the door (made from part of a tent, actually!).

As the evening closing time grew closer, many flowers, sweets and letters could be seen at the bath’s reception area, gifts from local residents. This shows how much not only the bath itself was appreciated, but also the members who had been supporting the bath for the past months.

Many people stayed to talk with the volunteers, not wanting to part and say goodbye.

The below photographs show some of the other support services which came to a close.

The store room at Ishinomaki Senshu University, where donated relief items from all over were collected and managed.

The warehouse was closed on September 22, remaining goods relocated, and administration taken over by the Ishinomaki City.

The “Dani Buster” team visited each of the evacuation centres to clean futons, blankets and so on of “dani” (fleas and insects.”

The last cleaning operations were held at the Watanoha Primary School on September 14. The specially built truck, with a futon dryer included, also had its final use on that day.

The role of the meal provision changed from maintaining lives to providing a place for residents to gather and be connected.

Meal provision was finished as at September 25.
There are some locations, however, where members of the local community who were brought together at Peace Boat’s meal provision locations have actually decided to continue to connect themselves.

From now, Peace Boat’s support will focus on the following activities.

Even after moving from evacuation centres to temporary housing, the difficulties will not end. Looking back on the lessons of the Hanshin Awaji Earthquake, when many people passed away in isolation, Peace Boat has launched new activities to support those living in temporary housing, such as delivering information through a specially produced newspaper. This will not just be put in post boxes, but delivered by hand as much as possible, as a way to share information about the needs of people rebuilding their lives and ensuring that life in the temporary housing is made as comfortable as possible. This is being conducted in collaboration with the local authorities, to put a face on the exchange of information and needs.

Piles of the newspaper ready for delivery.

Other long-term projecst to continue include the recently announced Disaster Relief Volunteer Training Programme, ongoing fishing industry support including oyster and seafood cultivation, and some cleaning activities. Other new programmes are also likely to begin upon consultation and coordination with the local community, and will be reported on this page

Photos by Suzuki Syoichi, Nakamura Mitsutoshi

AD Ichijo, finishing work for the day. In the evening, the staff have a series of busy meetings going over the day’s work and making plans for the following day.

From 4:30pm, AD Ichijo meets with the team leaders at Kasuka Fashion, where the cleaning team are staying overnight. They discuss reports of the day’s activities, and improvements that can be made for the following day.

From 6:30 pm, he participates in the Ishinomaki Disaster Recovery Assistance Council meeting at the Ishinomaki Senshu University.

Then, from 8:15 pm at the Peace Boat Headquarters at Kouzan, a meeting is held to go over the day’s activities with the ADs of each division and the main directors.

Then from 9:30pm, further detailed meetings are held with the ADs and Leader leaders of the fishing industry support team and others working closely together, to go over fine details about the upcoming work and confirm procedures for the next day. Finally, this is the last meeting!

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We found some time in between this busy day to interview Mr Ichijo.

Q： First, can you tell us a little about yourself – your age, where you are from, and your hobbies or favourite foods?
A: I am 25, and from Fukuoka. I enjoy making clothes (I used to study fashion design) and people watching. I really like looking at small details of people’s clothing and so on. As for sports, I played soccer in primary and hunior high school. I love crab cream croquettes – anything with creamy flavours. And also a spicy lotus root and burdock dish.

Q: How did you first learn about Peace Boat’s disaster relief volunteer activities?
A: Immediately after the disaster, I was searching for an organisation which I could volunteer in the affected areas with. As I had participated in Peace Boat’s 69th Global Voyage, I asked staff members that I know to contact me if Peace Boat would be sending volunteers. As soon as it was decided they contacted me, and so I participated right from the early days.

Q: What was your first impression upon arriving to Ishinomaki?
A: I arrived in Ishinomaki not so long after the disaster, on March 22. The situation went far beyond anything I had imagined from seeing photographs and video on the news, and I remember the moment I saw the debris there it suddenly changed to being my own personal issue. I went to the Minato Primary School, which was serving as an evacuation centre, and saw that the majority of people still did not have proper access to meals, and even before cleaning it was necessary to ensure that relief goods could be delivered.
In terms of human relations, it was really an extreme situation where people were moving not based on reason but on instinct. I’m not sure if it is to do with the culture in Tohoku, but there were many times when we delivered relief goods to individual homes but were turned away, told that “there must be other people in more need than we are,” but at times when materials were given out in bulk to larger groups of the community, the residents would then take many supplies. We see the same thing in the fishing industry support activities we are now carrying out – where fishermen at different ports and areas often say that “we hope that you won’t just help us, but will help people in the other ports just the same way,” always keeping in mind the balance in recovery of the fishing industry throughout the region.

Q: Could you tell us some of your motivation, things that have made you happy, or that have been difficult?
A: I’ve always liked to gather and coordinate people, or work behind the scenes to produce things. I would like to start my own business one day, and feel it is most important to not just be stuck behind a desk but to make sure you are out in the field using your body and experiencing different things. It is a position with a lot of responsibility and so of course I want to avoid making any fatal errors. However, I have learned that it is important to learn from small mistakes and reflect upon how things can continually be improved. In the early days, however, it was almost like a sense of mission, just feeling that we needed to do whatever needed to be done.
Moments when our efforts to create a good atmosphere or motivate volunteers are successful are always very fulfilling – which in my current position I am particularly considering all the time in the field. As for difficult moments… well, even if there were some I don’t really like saying that things are hard! If I had to say something, I suppose that I have often been in positions or jobs passed on from other people, and it can be challenging to go into something that is already up and running, as it takes a lot of physical energy.

Q: What are you hoping to do from now, and in what ways are you continuing to stay involved?
A: I plan to join the Disaster Volunteer Leader Training Programme (which will be announced at the October 13 event). Passing on our own experiences is something I would definitely like to put a lot of effort into from now.

As well as the six months experience in the field, AD Ichijo’s personal character and passion has certainly been a great support both to residents in Ishinomaki and the many volunteer members.

All photos by Nakamura Mitsutoshi

Yoko (far left) and Kazumi (second from left) with letters of thanks from local residents (May 29, Ishinomaki Senshu University)

Since Peace Boat launched its relief activities in Ishinomaki, the food provision team has prepared a total of more than 100,000 meals. This report follows the Assistant Directors (ADs) who have long been working with this team, Morinaga Yoko (in charge of the kitchen) and Kitamura Kazumi (in charge of support towards self-sufficiency).

Assistant Directors are responsible for coordinating volunteers, in groups of around five persons each. Peace Boat appoints ADs for each kind of work, according to their experiences and skills. These staff work in the field long-term, and through being familiar with the changes in required relief activities play a vital role in ensuring that the work undertaken is safe, smooth and efficient.

Upon arrival at Kozan, where the Central Kitchen is located, at 8 am, Yoko is already hard at work preparing the kitchen and surrounds. Her fast and sure movements demonstrate her long experience as a qualified nutritionist.

This is Kitchen and Delivery AD, Kazumi. She is considering the distribution of food and condiments to be carried on this day. As a licensed chef, her experience has been a strong support for the kitchen. The food preparation and delivery teams have been active for a long time, and now through working together with local residents to undertake these activities the formation of a new and warm community has meant a lot to Kazumi and the team.

Yoko begins the day’s food preparations. Today’s menu is fried rice with Chinese style soup.
In order to prepare such a large amount of food in a short time, Yoko is responsible for considering preparations from the day before, ensuring that things go smoothly.

Kazumi (right) working together with other members in the kitchen.

Scrambling eggs to be used for fried rice for 330 people!

Maintaining and preparing cooking equipment to be used in the field is an important part of the job.

The meals today will be delivered in the Koganehama district and Onagawa town. Furthermore, as projects to support self-sufficiency in residents, barbecues and traditional potato soup events will be held at lunch and dinner times in the Sengarita and Shintate districts. This is a particularly busy day for Kazumi as she heads out.

Kitchen staff Watanabe-kun mixing the fried rice.

The delivery team loads the prepared meals onto the van.

To ensure that the meals neither run out nor are leftover, samples of the amount for each portion are also prepared before departure.

Loaded up, Kazumi heads towards the traditional potato soup and barbecue locations.

On some occasions, local residents present warm gifts to the staff - this day, they were lucky enough to be given handmade handkerchief and tissue holders.

Although some districts are only visited once or twice weekly, a strong connection and trust between the staff, volunteers and local community has been built through regular visits.  An elderly woman who participated for the first time shared that “it’s not good to just stay at home depressed alone. I’m really glad that I came today – and I’ll be back!”

After the meal preparations are complete, Yoko turns to the computer.

After the day’s cooking and cleaning up has finished in the kitchen, Yoko heads to the second floor to confirm stock and order new supplies. There are many items necessary for nutritional balance other than those food items which are donated. Yoko creates the menu several days in advance, and managing food supplies and stock is an important part of her role as AD.

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An interview with ADs Yoko and Kazumi.

Q: Could you let us know where you are from, what you were doing before coming to Ishinomaki, and something about yourselves?

Yoko: I am from Kamakura in Kanagawa Prefecture, and I am a professional nutritionist. I used to teach at universities and so on. I love music, and often go to see live performances. Actually today one of my favourite bands is playing in Yokohama, so in a way my heart is on its way there, hehe.

Kazumi: I’m also from Kanagawa Prefecture, and I was living in New Zealand for seven years working as a chef.

Q: How did you learn about Peace Boat’s disaster relief activities, and when did you first participate?

Yoko: After the disaster I was searching through lots of different places, and came across Peace Boat’s activities through the home page and twitter. I had often seen Peace Boat’s posters around and knew about its global voyages, and was quite surprised to hear of its disaster relief activities. I came to Ishinomaki as part of the second group of volunteers, so arrived on April 2.

Kazumi: I was in New Zealand at the time and learnt about it from the homepage. I didn’t know anything about Peace Boat before participating. There was a lot of information about Peace Boat on the internet, and so I decided to come and see for myself. After returning to Japan from NZ, I came to Ishinomaki in the sixth group of volunteers, from Golden Week.

A cartoon of Yoko on the kitchen refrigerator - showing her soft, friendly personality!

Kazumi cheerfully preparing food at the barbecue - her energetic, bright personality always creates a great atmosphere.

Q: What was your impression when you first arrived at Ishinomaki?

Yoko: To be honest, I was thinking “is this really Japan?” It seemed like a dim movie set without any people, and I remember being asked by one of the local survivors, “why have you come to such a place?”

Kazumi: I was much more shocked seeing the situation here in person than I had been after seeing it on television. When I looked at the scene from Hiyoriyama Park overlooking the city, I was brought to tears.

Q: Were you originally hoping to join the kitchen activities?

Yoko: I was planning to do anything at all at first, but also hoping to join the meals provision activities. At first I joined the cleaning team, and then also worked to distribute radios outside a small store and so on.

Kazumi: I was always hoping to work in the kitchen. I planned to stay for a long time, and since I had some health issues in the past such as a hernia operation I thought that I would only last a week if I was working on cleaning activities.

Q: Please share with us some times when you have felt the work was most worthwhile, and some things that have been difficult.

Yoko: The amount of meals we were preparing was huge (at its peak, 7000-8000 meals in one hour!) and so I was not able to leave the kitchen, always cooking at a huge space. I was really happy to hear reports at meetings from delivery team members who had been outside. Since then we have had more members and things have settled down somewhat, so now I am able to leave the kitchen and meet and communicate with local residents – which gives of course a huge new motivation. I am so glad to be able to build these connections and trust, and speak with local people.

Kazumi: At first I had also hoped to support care activities in the evacuation centres, but I wasn’t able to get out of the kitchen. At the moment, through the 自活支援 programmes it is great to be able to cook and eat together with local residents, and I believe this environment is really fulfilling. I was so glad recently when I visited the evacuation centre at the 好文館高校 and was told, “It is great that Peace Boat came here. If you hadn’t, we wouldn’t have the will to be able to be here together cooking and eating. We found the seeds of hope ourselves, but it was Peace Boat that watered and nurtured those seeds for us. It was you, Kazumi. Thank you.”
As for things that were difficult… nothing in particular!

Q: Looking back on the activities until now, what kind of involvement are you hoping for in the future?

Yoko: Through being involved for quite an extended time, the best part is being able to see the city shift towards the recovery stage, seeing how hard other members are working, and being able to share joys and progress together. The people in evacuation centres have such strength, and they are actually always supporting us. Ishinomaki is now my second home, and I am sure I will be coming here often next year, three years from now, five years from now, and in the future.

Kazumi: The meal provision we are continuing now started from visiting each nearby house one by one. Of course one day this provision will come to an end, but I hope it won’t just be “okay, that’s it, finished.” I hope we can continue to create together places where residents can gather together, and use cooking and food as a tool to bring happiness.

A letter of thanks from local children, given just before the kitchen team moved from the outdoor tent at the Ishinomaki Senshu University campus to Kozan (now the Central Kitchen.)

The fact that the meals prepared by the kitchen volunteers and brought around the region by the delivery volunteers has changed from “food in order to survive” to “food in order to build connections between people” is certainly a result not just of the half a year that has passed, but of the support and dedication of many people such as Yoko and Kazumi.

All photos by Nakamura Mitsutoshi

In conjunction with the conclusion of the bathing facilities that had been provided by the Japanese Self Defense Forces, and upon consultation with local city hall officials, public baths were constructed by the Ishinomaki Disaster Recovery Assistance Council Inc. (IDRAC) with Peace Boat in charge of the operation of the baths including changing the water, cleaning and reception duties. There are many people who use the baths everyday and most of these people are living in evacuation centers or in the surrounding areas where infrastructure has not yet been restored.

Today’s report is about “Fudou no yu” which was constructed in front of the local community center.

Please see here for the report about the construction of the baths.

There is now an impressive sign in front of the baths.

Around 100 people use “Fudou no yu” each day. Visitors of course include residents from the nearby evacuation enter but people come from as far as the Watanami region, on the other side of the Magiyama Tunnel.

Despite this area being significantly damaged by the tsunami, it was difficult for help to reach this area because of its location on the outskirts of the city. Peace Boat found out that many people were living on the second floor of houses that had been partially destroyed and the subsequent delivery of meals and other supplies became a lifeline for the people in this area.

Delays in emergency relief for certain areas also have an effect on the speed of recovery. Limitations in the amount of machinery and manpower mean that the restoration of infrastructure will still take time.

Without restoration of gas, electricity and drainage, it is of course impossible for people to have a bath. These conditions are likely to continue throughout September and so “Fudou no yu” bathing facilities play an important role.

Volunteers at the reception area.

Some people come every day so it’s important for volunteers to create a nice relaxing atmosphere by chatting with people when they come to the bath. There’s a water cooler and a bench to sit on as well.

And of course there is cleaning.

Because the facilities are temporary, the water doesn’t flow directly to the drain. Volunteers work patiently scraping the water away to make sure the water doesn’t overflow onto the street.

Volunteers also have to make sure the shampoo and other amenities are always stocked up. A unique feature of the bathing facilities here is that the products used do not contain any synthetic surface activators so as to prevent the drains becoming blocked with soap bubbles. In addition, the hot water is re-used for cleaning bathing equipment and floorboards before it is thrown away.

The volunteers working here keep doing these tasks and welcoming people to the bath with a smile everyday because they want people to be able to enjoy using the baths.

The volunteers at “Fudou no yu” and “Kizuna no yu” at Ai Plaza hope that the people of Ishinomaki come to use the baths.
All photos by Kataoka Kazushi

Today’s menu, however, is a bit different to usual. This report is about the current situation of meal preparation activities, as the earlier emergency stage and lack of materials is changing.

The meal delivery van is headed for Hirobuchi Elementary School in Ishinomaki. Many of the residents have moved into temporary housing, but this elementary school is still home to more than 20 people.

After arriving, the volunteers meet with the people who live at and operate the evacuation center. They arrange to use an area of the sports field and start preparations.

The volunteers are carrying cut-up vegetables and meat.

A barbecue is on the menu for today – actually a new style of meal preparation. Up until now, ready-made meals were handed out to residents. This new style is where volunteers take the ingredients and equipment necessary to cook on the spot, together with residents. As the needs in the area are changing, the idea emerged that residents could regain some independence by creating an environment where they can cook what they want to eat themselves.

This doesn’t mean just suddenly showing up with a box of ingredients and expecting the residents to cook for themselves. Volunteers make sure there is the right nutritional balance and then deliver the pre-prepared ingredients and cooking equipment.

As the charcoal is lit and preparations commence, one of the residents comes to see what is going on.

Other residents are drawn outside by the smell and smoke from the charcoal and they all gather round.

Before we know it, the barbecue party has begun.

“It’s not ready yet. Please wait a bit longer…” “Save that sausage for me,” and similar such conversations can be heard.

There are lots of vegetables which are often lacking in the lunch boxes that are handed out. The large amount of food disappears by the minute.

The grill quickly empties no matter how much food is cooked. Don’t eat too much everyone!

Volunteers cooking together with local residents.

The volunteers cannot resolve all of the problems faced by residents who have been living in evacuation centers for months. However, the distance between volunteers and residents is lessened through having casual conversations during situations such as this.

This style of meal preparation was implemented after consulting with the people at the evacuation center. It’s important to gather information about the number of people, the living environment, and whether or not there is cooking equipment that can be used. This new method is being used in 10 areas at the moment.

It’s a matter of trial and error for the volunteers as well. We are very grateful to the people at the evacuation centers who welcome the volunteers warmly.

We hope that this kind of improvisation in regular meal preparation and other volunteer activities will provide opportunities for new relationships to form amongst local residents.

All photos by Kataoka Kazushi.

The need for help with delivery of aid supplies and help with meal preparation in areas where Peace Boat is conducting volunteer activities (including Ishinomaki, Oshika Peninsula, Ogatsu and Onagawa) is stabilizing. However, we are now in need of volunteers to help with diversifying needs including cleaning of graves, fishing industry support, provision of bath facilities, delivery of daily necessities to temporary housing facilities assistance with town-building activities. There are many areas in which the help of volunteers is needed. Please help by becoming a disaster relief volunteer!

See here for further details.

Q:
In Ishinomaki, the police search for missing persons was continuing until yesterday. Even five months since the disaster, there are still around 900 people whose whereabouts are unknown. Ishinomaki was one of the hardest hit areas by the tsunami. Please tell us what it was like when you first went there, only a few days after the disaster.

A:
I left Tokyo on March 16. The information at the time was conflicting, and heading towards the affected areas in Tohoku, we weren’t even sure which roads were usable. Ueno Yoshinori and I travelled ahead via Niigata, and Yamamoto Takashi and Ueshima Yasuhiro left Tokyo a little later with many relief goods onboard. At that time, we hadn’t fully decided where we would head to. That evening, they heard that relief goods were not yet reaching Ishinomaki, and so decided to go there first. Actually, Yamamoto and Ueshima arrived ahead of us, and we joined them at the Ishinomaki City Hall.

The first thing that was necessary was to help deliver goods so that the survivors could get through each day. Of course the goods themselves were in short supply, but even more than that was a lack of people to help. The local administration and the Self Defence Force were active very early, however their deliveries had to be limited to larger evacuation shelters and so on. We felt that it was important to be able to reach individual survivors in further out places, and gain an understanding of the needs of the survivors in smaller shelters, still living in their own homes, and so on.

Q:
At that time, how many organisations other than Peace Boat were already in the area?

A:
Other than the Self Defence Force, Fire Brigade, Police, and specialised humanitarian aid groups such as the Red Cross, there were barely any. On March 20, the first coordination meeting between NPOs was held at the Ishinomaki Senshu University (which later became IDRAC), however at that time there were around ten organisations present. Even just considering the distribution of relief supplies, as the local transportation systems were not functioning, even if goods reached the warehouses there were no vehicles or people to distribute them further than that. We decided that Peace Boat’s role would be to help bring as many pairs of hands to help – ie volunteers – and also to try to increase the number of groups coming up to help the relief efforts. We felt that it was extremely important to really deepen coordination and communication between the different groups involved in aid in Ishinomaki.

Q:
And after that, Peace Boat began to call for volunteers. On March 21 7 more people joined to prepare, and on March 26 the first group of 50 volunteers arrived in Ishinomaki. Could you tell us a little more about those activities?

A:
As other staff were providing meals, cleaning or transporting goods, I was working to establish the volunteers receiving system. As part of that, I was allocated to support the Disaster Volunteer Centre set up by the Ishinomaki City Social Welfare Council (SWC) at the Ishinomaki Senshu University. The SWC staff were working incredibly hard within such a confusing situation to get the operations of the Volunteer Centre on track. Since the Great Hanshin Awaji Earthquake of 1995, individual volunteers in disaster situations are coordinated by Disaster Volunteer Centres set up by the SWC. However, in this case, the SWC buildings were greatly damaged by the tsunami, and many of the staff themselves were also affected. There simply weren’t enough people. And so, Peace Boat decided that I would work as full time support for the Disaster Volunteer Centre.

There were so many visitors at first. From morning to night, people came to the Volunteer Centre looking for information – relief organisations, individuals, media persons, and survivors themselves. At the third NPO/NGO coordination meeting, it was decided that I would hold the mobile telephone which received enquiries. From early in the morning until the middle of the night, my phone rang nonstop, with people asking, “I want to go and provide meals but what shelters are in need?”, “I would like to volunteer, but how do I get there?”, “what is the situation like there now?”

Even several days later, there was no sign that the situation would improve, and so the real operations of the SWC Volunteer Centre could not start – meaning that volunteers wouldn’t be able to come, even if they wanted to. At that time, what was locally needed the most was provision of hot meals, and at the same time, that was also what most relief organisations contacting us were able to provide. So, from there I started to gather information and coordinate the organisation of hot meals provision throughout Ishinomaki.

As well as being the contact point for relief organisations who came without previous notice, I was also answering the phones and also simultaneously coordinating the increasing number of requests for meals provision. I was also working as the Chair and minutes taker for the NPO/NGO coordination meetings, but it was quite full on.

Q:
Yes, at the time I remember that actually your name was listed as the official contact person by the SWC for coordination of meals provision, right?

A:
Yes. At that time, I really didn’t have the capacity to think about that fully. We still didn’t have the full picture of the damage caused by the tsunami, or the situation of the survivors. All of the organisations present were desperately trying to gather information, including the number of survivors in each place, and which places food was still not reaching. So, we were informing organisations that wanted to start providing meals that they would need to be very flexible in this complicated situation, to be able to look after their own operations without having to rely on support from other groups, and then sending them to specific shelters etc after letting them know the location and approximate number of survivors there.

One of the things I really came to understand after coming to the area was that things such as, “someone else will do it”, or “technically, that should be done by …” just don’t apply in disaster affected areas. Of course it is important to allocate specific roles, however everyone has to have a sense of responsibility for doing things themselves, otherwise nothing will progress. And, through that sense of responsibility, the local community will also come to trust the outside aid organisations, too.

Q:
After that, the SWC became one of the first disaster centres to accept individual volunteers from outside the prefecture, and the NPO/NGO coordination meetings  became IDRAC. This new system of dividing the roles of individual volunteers to the SWC and group volunteers to the Council was unique, and is now referred to a the “Ishinomaki Model.” Considering that despite the large scale of the damage and of the city itself, and the huge amount of work to be done, do you think it can be said that the reception of volunteers in Ishinomaki has been a success?

A:
Personally, as there is still so much left for volunteers to do, I don’t believe we are at the stage to be able to say whether it was a success or a failure. However, hearing the situation in other disaster affected areas, the model here in Ishinomaki is unique, and I believe that the exchange of information and communication between different organisations is going quite well. The City of Ishinomaki had already planned to have the disaster volunteer reception centre at the Ishinomaki Senshu University, and the presence of the SWC and Mr Ito of IDRAC, meant that the foundations to support such a model were in place. Of course different organisations and staff such as Yamamoto and myself were running around supporting coordination on the ground, but without such a local foundation the system would not have been realised. At the time of a disaster, you can really see the difference when there has been prior planning, and trained personnel in place.

Q:
What were you working on since IDRAC was launched?

A:
In April and May, I was coordinating the provision of meals. The Self Defence Force was providing around 8,000 meals for the larger evacuation centres, and at the peak IDRAC was providing 10,000 – 20,000 meals per day. Peace Boat established a kitchen to make 1,000 – 2,000 meals daily, however as many other organisations were coming to Ishinomaki just for one day at a time to provide meals, it was like a puzzle to put together the locations and schedule. At the same time, we were also working to try to gather information about some affected areas which were not yet being reached. After the Golden Week holidays, the number of volunteers decreased, and the number of groups coming in just for one day at a time to provide meals also drastically fell. To be honest it was a very difficult time. In order to somehow contribute to providing a stable number of meals each day, Peace Boat decided to try to increase the numbers of meals we can make, and so started to prepare the Central Kitchen.

From there, as IDRAC began to play a role in the overall relief activities in Ishinomaki, I began to participate in meetings of the City’s disaster relief headquarters. We then started to have weekly meetings with the City Hall and the Self Defence Force, to coordinate food and material supplies. From there, we started to conduct projects in collaboration with the SDF, such as distributing relief goods or large cleaning efforts together. A link between the governmental and civic relief efforts was able to be made, as everyone shared the common goal of speeding up the recovery process as much as possible.

Q:
In Ishinomaki, we often see volunteers and local people working together, sweating together, greeting each other happily. Immediately after the disaster, there were many voices saying that volunteers would only get in the way, however that is hard to imagine now! From your own experiences, is there anything that left a particular impression in this regard?

A:
Of course there are many difficult things, however there are countless episodes which have been so happy, or given us so much courage. One example was the concert given by guitarist Oshio Kotaro in the centre of town. His guitar performance is just amazing. Radio DJ Yamamoto Shoo was able to connect us to realise Mr Oshio’s concert. Shoo started a project together with friends  just after the earthquake to deliver radios, school equipment and so on to the affected areas, called the Radio Baton Project, and has come to Ishinomaki very often.

Shoo was able to introduce us, and the concert itself was held on June 10, I think. It was held at a clothing store called “Kameshichi” just 2 minutes’ walk from the Central Kitchen. Kameshichi was inundated by the tsunami, and the first floor had been covered in “hedro” tsunami sludge. It was one of the stores that Peace Boat volunteers worked very hard to clean up.

While of course there were many products that were destroyed, there were some that were able to be washed and recovered. Peace Boat became friends with the owner of Kameshichi, and so kindly offered to lend us the store as the concert venue. On the day, we let local residents know about the event, and volunteers were also able to join in and enjoy. Actually, one of the volunteers who was involved in cleaning up the Kameshichi store was SUGIZO of the band X-JAPAN, and he himself came to the concert that night. Even the owner of the shop was very surprised!

The concert was in such an at home atmosphere, and it felt like a family. I had been working to overcome differences between organisations active in Ishinomaki to all work together, and noticed that somehow along the way the distance between the volunteers and the locals also disappeared. It was really a moment that the circle of diverse support all connected together, irregardless of who was famous or not.

There are of course many other episodes, but I’ll share them next time!

The meeting for volunteer leaders held each night at Kozan.
Q:
And finally, could you let us know the challenges and goals for the steps ahead?

A:
Actually, just the other day I went together with the Chair of IDRAC to deliver relief goods to Sanjo City, Niigata, which was severely damaged by the recent rain and floods.  After that, some organisations who are participating in the Council also went to Fukushima to investigate what can be done there. The town of Kaneyama was greatly affected by the rains and has an elderly population, and so they requested some support for setting up a volunteer centre, clearing mud and cleaning up. Several IDRAC member organisations travelled there, and yesterday actually 25 Peace Boat volunteers were working in Kaneyama. We often hear, especially from citizens of Ishinomaki, that “the next time a disaster happens somewhere else, we’ll also go to help.” A society that is able to deal well with natural disasters is one that is prepared and has a system to connect people together to support each other. That is something that we all have to think about together, between the adminstration, citizens and organisations in the area we live in.

The disaster which struck this May brought more sadness and suffering to Ishinomaki than can be expressed in words. As I am not a survivor myself I cannot even begin to measure how it must feel… But, I believe that all of our experiences in Ishinomaki will be necessary in creating a connected society which is ready to deal with disasters. Of course this goal is somewhat in the future considering the situation that we are still dealing with here in Ishinomaki, but I am not talking just about myself, but also all of the Peace Boat colleagues, the more than 5,000 volunteers, and the “family” here in Ishinomaki.

If everyone doesn’t just expect someone else to do things for them, but everyone pitches in to help out themselves, then something can be done. Well, actually I just got married myself, so I have to also make sure I pay attention to my own family so that I’m not left on my own though, heh!

Photos: Ueno Yoshinori

Mr Kevin Cristian Okeke is the representative of one such group, mostly active in the Tokyo area. After the disaster of March 11 hit, the group discussed how they could support the survivors who had lost their homes and livelihoods. However, dealing with language and information barriers, as well as societal prejudices, many members of the Nigerian community themselves are in difficult positions living in Japan. The group spent time discussing with other Nigerians living throughout Japan, and carried out fundraising efforts to eventually raise 2 million yen (around US$26,000). According to Mr Okeke, “Nigeria is a country with many tribes, speaking over 300 different languages. Here in Japan also there are many different groups based on regions and languages, however we were able to all come together in order to do something for this country Japan that we love, and for the survivors of Tohoku.” After conducting their fundraising efforts, the group contacted Peace Boat via this website to discuss how their funds could be put to use to support the people of Tohoku, particularly those whose homes were lost through the tsunami.

The town of Onagawa, four and a half months after the tsunami (photographed on August 2, 2011)

Peace Boat has been supporting survivors moving into temporary housing in Onagawa, as mentioned in this blog earlier. After so many buildings were destroyed and houses washed away by the tsunami, the entire landscape of Onagawa was drastically changed. While many people are still living in evacuation centres, of course all of their everyday household items were also washed away. Currently, construction of temporary housing is being carried out in 30 locations through Okinawa, with 1300 homes planned to be built by the local administration. Currently, 900 homes have been built in 25 locations, and the remainder are planned to be completed by September. However, although rent is not required at the temporary housing, gas, electricity and meals all cost money. As so many people have lost their jobs and livelihoods, being selected to move into temporary housing does not necessarily mean being able to return to somewhat of a stable life, but rather that more support and aid is necessary. In order to make the move into temporary housing at least slightly easier, Peace Boat volunteers have been working to deliver necessary items such as futons, kitchen and bathroom goods, cleaning equipment and so on.

Above photos by Chiga Kenji

On July 24, 10 representatives of Nigerian community groups from around Japan gathered at the Peace Boat Disaster Relief Volunteer Centre in Tokyo. Living in Japan, the information available in English following the disaster in March has been very limited. The coordinator of Peace Boat’s disaster relief activities in Tokyo Goda Shigehiro first presented to the group the current situation of survivors in the affected areas and the progress of recovery. A telephone link was made to coordinator Yamamoto Takashi in Ishinomaki, who introduced the specific current situation of support activities for people in Onagawa and the status of the temporary housing. Through detailed questions and discussion, the dedication and motivation of the Nigerian community was clear, as well as the challenges faced by the international community in Japan, with limited access to information in languages other than Japanese.

Mr Okeke also shared the following message on behalf of the Nigerian group:

NIGERIANS CARE AND STAND BY YOU

The Nigerian Community in Japan, sympathizes with the victims of March 11, Earthquake and Tsunami. We say, stay strong and never give up hopes of overcoming these difficulties and returning to normal life, we believe in your courage, determination and resilience that made Japan an outstanding Country, understand that you are not alone in this time of trials and tribulations, that Nigerians and the whole world stand by your efforts in transforming your fatigue of despair to a buoyancy of hope. We love you all and will always remain your friend in need.
Peace Boat greatly appreciates the warm support of the Nigerian community in Japan. The funds raised will be used for the delivery and costs related to providing necessary everyday items to the temporary housing in Onagawa, through until mid-September. The support is giving great and specific strength to Japan, now trying to once again stand up after the tragedy of March 11, and will also be a great contribution to shifting society forwards. Thank you once again for the support, and we look forward to continuing to live together as good neighbours from now on.

※ And finally! After the session ended, the group exchanged with Peace Boat volunteers and staff, sharing together delicious kamaboko (fish cake) freshly delivered from Onagawa!

Some survivors are now starting to move from evacuation shelters in schools, community centres and gyms to temporary housing. Various NGOs and NPOs are involved in supporting efforts to provide the facilities in temporary housing in the areas in which they are active. Peace Boat is responsible for supporting the temporary housing in Onagawa, a town 30 minutes from Ishinomaki City.

1300 temporary homes are planned for construction in Onagawa, and Peace Boat has now completed the delivery of relief goods to support new lives for people moving into 250 of these such houses. On the day of this entry (originally written on June 19), deliveries were made to 94 temporary homes in the Shimizu district of Onagawa. These items included sleepwear such as futons and blankets, and home goods such as for cleaning, washing and cooking, all generously provided by the supermarket chain SEIYU.

The entrance to temporary housing in Shimizu district, Onagawa

There are 94 temporary homes constructed in this district, for 250 residents. The local authorities select who to be allocated to these homes through a random process, and as soon as their names are called survivors are able to move in from the following day. Thus, the items are carried quickly but carefully into the newly constructed houses.

First, futons, sleepwear, cleaning and washing items, kitchen items and everyday housewares are unloaded from the trucks.
These items are absolutely necessary for the new lives, and are carried in the following way to ensure that they are in pristine condition when the residents move in.

Items are unloaded from the truck following instructions of the coordinating staff

Each box is then individually carried

The destination for each box is carefully confirmed

Relief supplies for the temporary housing also includes furniture such as tables

From there, the relief goods are delivered to each house. The volunteers also unpack the goods and set up the furniture ready for use.

Next comes the sleepwear such as futons. Imagining the survivors being able to sleep comfortably in their new homes is of course a great motivation for the volunteers in their work.

These items have been donated by World Vision, which is also providing relief goods for many other regions.
Each futon has an individual message included together.

The message reads, "wishing for recovery as soon as possible"

Evacuees also came to observe the work, saying to themselves "it's so clean, isn't it! I hope that we will also be selected..."

During the past three months living in evacuation centres, it has been difficult for survivors to find an environment to be together as a family, such as to sit down for meals together even. Through moving into these houses, families can once again sit together around the dinner table and shift towards having some kind of privacy once again.

Cooking equipment is laid out on the dinner table – all new items generously donated.

In the letterbox of each room is a set of paperwork for registering their new addresses.

The day of delivering items while imagining new life in these temporary homes comes to an end. After carefully laying out each fo the relief goods, the 40 volunteers take a break while sitting on cardboard boxes, after a hard day’s work.

Photo: Jan Willem van Poortvliet

Peace Boat’s activities in Ishinomaki are being supported by many volunteers, including those who travel from throughout Japan and overseas to support the relief efforts. However, many members of the local community – themselves deeply affected by the earthquake and tsunami – are also joining Peace Boat’s activities.
One such person is Bandai Yoshinobu, pictured above. Mr Bandai, known fondly as “Ban-chan,” is a driver who has been contributing immensely to recovery efforts in Ishinomaki by transporting many volunteers by bus to their mud-clearing work sites, or transporting mud and debris by truck. Particularly in April and May Mr Bandai was responsible for driving Peace  Boat’s volunteer buses, and became a character beloved by all for his bright, friendly personality.

Mr Bandai and his family live in an apartment in the Yoshino district of Ishinomaki City. The first floor of the building was totally flooded, however their apartment on the second floor was not destroyed. However, as the life lines have not yet returned they are not able to live in the apartment, and are now staying at Mr Bandai’s wife’s parents’ home, in an area which received less damage. Mr Bandai’s parents lived in Minato district which was severely affected by the tsunami, and their house was totally destroyed. His parents still today are staying in the gymnasium of the local junior high school where they first found refuge.

On March 11, Mr Bandai experienced the earthquake while working with a a shovel car in Ishinomaki’s Niidate district. The workers were all dismissed immediately, and Mr Bandai travelled by car to his home – listening to the radio warning that the tsunami had reached neighbouring Onagawa.

“At 3:04, they said that the first wave of 50cm had hit Onagawa. And, they were predicting that it would reach a height of 6m. Hearing that, I somehow thought that it would be a maximum of about 2m here in Ishinomaki.”

Mr Bandai was driving over Mt Hiyori, just about to head downhill towards his home. However at that time, just as he was about to reach the foot of the hill, the tsunami reached the area. The driver of the car just in front of Mr Bandai left his car and ran by foot as he saw the tsunami coming. Mr Bandai put his car into reverse and tried to run away by vehicle. Remembering the scene, Mr Bandai says it was like a race, with people leaving their cars and running up the hill, cars such as Mr Bandai reversing up, and the waves coming higher and higher.

As he reached the top of the mountain, Mr Bandai saw many cars being washed away by the tsunami, including many with people still inside. He drove closer to the area, and managed to open a car window and save two people. However, it was not possible to reach people further away. The sound of the horns of cars being washed away has still not yet left Mr Bandai’s ears. “They were just going on and on, beep beep beep, like cries for help.”

In the Tohoku (northeast) region, there had been a large earthquake just two days before March 11. At that time there had also been a tsunami warning, however no large waves came.

“Since two days before the tsunami hadn’t come, I thought that we would be alright that day also. I think everyone was thinking that in some way to themselves…”

Photo:遠藤和秀

Mr Bandai asked, “Do you know a saying called ‘Inochi Tendenko’”?
“Inochi” means life, while “Tendenko” means something like each one, or each individual. This is a saying of the coastal area of Tohoku, meaning that when an earthquake or tsunami comes, each person should protect their own life individually. Mr Bandai’s wife’s family is originally from Tarou town in Iwate Prefecture. This is a town which has experienced the Meiji Sanriku Tsunami, the Showa Sanriku Tsunami, and the Chile Earthquake Tsunami – all of which brought devastating damage to the area. Mrs Bandai’s grandmother is a survivor of each of these disasters.

When Mr Bandai went to greet his wife’s family before marriage, the grandmother asked of him: “If a tsunami came, would you be able to leave your wife and children and run?” Mr Bandai was not sure how to answer this question, when the grandmother said “if you are not able to escape on your own, I won’t allow you to marry my granddaughter.”
Usually, most grandparents would not allow someone who would run away on their own to marry their grandchildren. However, this perspective is different for someone who has experienced three disastrous tsunamis.
Her grandmother went on to say, “if someone goes back to try and save another, then they will just be both killed by the tsunami. That is how everyone dies, and the city then disappears. Who will be around to create the future? Each person must run and survive on their own, without going back for children or relatives.”

That is the meaning of the saying “Inochi tendenko.” This is a saying which shows the true horror of the tsunami, as expressed by people who know just how terrible it can be. However, in the recent disaster this saying was not able to be followed, and many lives were lost. Mr Bandai says that he himself really experienced the full meaning of this expression.

“There will definitely be more earthquakes. There will also be more tsunami. So, I will continue to share this saying. Don’t just think that another huge tsunami won’t come again, don’t make any judgements by yourself, just run to a high place as fast as you can! Run even one minute, one second faster, and climb one millimetre, one centimetre higher!”

Mr Bandai visited Onagawa, which was totally devastated by the tsunami, immediately after the disaster. He will never forget the scenes there.

“There were parents going through the rubble of where their homes had been, calling out their children’s names. The parents had glass or nails stuck in them, but kept searching. I never want to see anything like that again. If a tsunami ever comes again, everyone must run as fast as they can to a safe, high place, and just watch the tsunami from there. Cars and homes will be washed away. But, all the people must be on the top of the mountains, watching the tsunami come through the town, but able to think that even though all their belongings are being washed away, every single life is safe. That is what I want to say. To make sure that happens, I feel I must keep talking to people about the real horror of the tsunami.”

While talking, Mr Bandai’s eyes welled with tears. He continues to share his experience of the tragic tsunami with volunteers who come.

(Continued in Part 2)