12.3.11

Earthquake Emergency

For those of you who hadn't heard, an 8.8 earthquake struck yesterday, March 11th, at 2:46 PM off the coast of northern Honshu, Japan. Miyagi, Iwate, and Fukushima prefectures were worst hit, by the quake and also by the huge tsunamis that followed, inundating the coast and sweeping away masses of cars and buildings. Here in the good old Greater Tokyo Metropolitan Area (or should we say, Not Greatest Tokyo Metropolitan Area?) the quake shook up buildings, knocked over massive filing cabinets, caused the ceiling of the Kudan Kaikan to collapse, broke up roads, knocked out power to Kawasaki City, and caused a fire in the Ichihara oil refinery which caused the oil refinery to subsequently explode (I must say, it's not every day that you see an exploding oil refinery.)

The quake also stopped all train traffic for hours, stranding hundreds of people in places like Shinjuku and Shibuya stations, and forcing hundreds more to walk home along highways, many kilometers in the cold and dark. Local hotels took in refugees who lived too far away to walk home over night. Emergency stores were brought out from company warehouses, and in some offices, with no one able to leave, the managers hit the convenience stores as fast as possible, carted back armloads of Yebisu beer, and treated the company underlings to a party.

The quake was followed by at least 12 aftershocks, many of them measuring more than 7.0 at the epicenter, which wasn't so much an epicenter proper as an entire fault line. Tokyo traffic patterns are still in chaos, while the damage, especially in northern Honshu, is still being assessed, though it is undoubtedly severe. The confirmed casualties already number in the hundreds, and hundreds more people have lost their homes and their fields. It sure isn't "business as usual."

Which brings me to my announcement, which is: not rain nor snow nor sleet nor hail may be able to stop Buck-Tick, but unfortunately...quakes can. The following notice was posted on the band's website a few hours ago:

Utakata no Razzle Dazzle
March 12th @ Zepp Osaka
Fish Tanker's Only 2011
March 13th @ Namba Hatch

Due to the large earthquake that struck yesterday off the northern Pacific coast of Honshu, traffic patterns within Japan are in a state of chaos, affecting the ability of the band members and staff to travel safely, and safely transport the band's equipment.

The band members want to put the safety of the fans before anything else. Currently, it has not been decided whether or not the performances this weekend will be cancelled.

In the event of a postponement or cancellation, fans will be reimbursed in full for their tickets, so please await announcements about a reimbursement procedure. Do not discard your ticket or ticket receipt.

We extend our heartfelt prayers to all earthquake victims, and pray that all those who lost their lives in this disaster may rest in peace. We pray for swift recovery in the regions struck by the quake.


Yeah, it sucks big hairy monkey balls, but read between the lines here: the Buck-Tick members are all safe! However, what with aftershocks and all that, the danger here is not over. All our readers overseas, please send us your prayers. And everyone on the Pacific rim, beware of tsunamis.

6 comments:

  1. I'm extremely happy to hear that all the members of Buck Tick are safe.Japan is a strong country and nothing will ever be able to destroy their illusions. Let our prayers be with all the Japanese people who have been affected by these events.

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  2. i live in hawai'i but i don't think we were affected that bad...anyways i'm so glad they're okay and everything but most importantly i saw the huge wave of debree and cars, etc.....it made me too scared to sleep peacefully....

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  3. I am so glad that you are safe and they are all safe. It brings a lot of relief to me to see these kinds of updates especially when I'm trying to find out about so many others.

    Please, take care.

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  4. I'm so glad to hear that you and the members of BUCK-TICK are safe. I spent hours this morning after seeing the news, worrying over their safety, until Imai posted on his blog to say that they were postponing the shows and were alive and well.
    I'm glad you're okay, too. I don't know what I'd do without my favourite not-greatest translator.

    Take care of yourself, and stay safe.

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  5. Please Take Care, Stay Safe, and Stay Calm!

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  6. I'm so glad you and the B-T guys are safe! They were my first thought when I heard about it (selfish, I know..). I've been watching a couple of posts on jpopasia.com and seeing who all in the JRock and JPop worlds are safe and accounted for. If anyone would like to check on others besides B-T (and I'm sure there are a number of you), here's the link: http://www.jpopasia.com/news/jrock-artists-reported-safe::5422.html

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