Sat AM 3/19 - MCAS Iwakuni, Japan

View from BR window over the flight line & beyond to the Seto Inland Sea. This huge ship has been here all week.


It's always good to wake up in Japan and NOT see "Breaking News" on local TV! Heroic efforts continue to contain & prevent major radiation release. Firefighters are continuing to spray seawater in an attempt to cool the overheating reactors, and power company employees are working non-stop to restore power to the cooling pumps, which is VERY encouraging news this morning. Once power is restored, then it will be determined how to repair pumps which were designed to continuously cool reactors - before the devastating earthquakes and tsunami on Friday March 11.

WHO (World Health Organization) has announced "No radiation risk outside evacuation zone" - so please read this article (and others on this local site) from NHK World. This is GREAT NEWS and hopefully, will help calm fears around the world! Please share this information!

This morning, Stan checked his school email and found a message that had arrived after 5 PM yesterday - he was already gone from school since it was a Friday. It provided information regarding all DoDDS schools on Honshu Island of Japan, many of which are in or near the stricken area. We were surprised to read that Iwakuni (and other bases south of Osaka) was specifically excluded from the "voluntary evacuation" (different info than we had received earlier in the afternoon!) So, we're taking this as more very good news for Iwakuni! FYI - "Voluntary" evacuation means that if you choose to go, you sign an IOU agreeing to reimburse the government for the cost of your transportation. I assume this would not be the case if the situation were to become emergent and we were required to leave.

As for us in Iwakuni Japan, we watch & wait. Life continues here, but like the rest of the world, we grieve for those lost and missing, and the thousands of victims and evacuees still struggling to survive in shelters. Their hope, cooperation, and tenacity in these difficult times is extraordinarily admirable. Thanks for your continued interest and expressions of concern and please do not worry!

Even though it's been a very cold Spring so far, I found these daffodils bravely blooming on my BR balcony - a sure sign of hope!