Two years have passed since the catastrophic earthquake and tsunami devastated the Pacific coast of north-eastern Japan on Friday, March 11, 2011. On the second anniversary of this tragic earthquake, we would like to express our sincere appreciations and respect once again to all the people in the world that prayed and donated for the Japanese victims as well as to the governments
and armed forces that were engaged in rescue operation. The magnitude of the earthquake was 9.0, the most powerful earthquake ever measured in Japan. About 19,000 are dead and missing. Three prefectures in the Tohoku (north-eastern) region of Japan, Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima, have been most seriously damaged. Many cities and towns are still far from reconstruction.
The area around the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant is still evacuated due to radioactive contamination. There seems to be a long way to go before the survivors recover their normal life.
We thank you for joining us in a moment of prayer for the victims.
Our condolences on so many people's deaths.