Japan marks seventh anniversary of devastating tsunami
The tsunami overwhelmed sea walls and washed away buildings, cars and entire neighbourhoods as it swept inland.
Japan has marked the seventh anniversary of a tsunami that claimed more than 18,000 lives on the north-east coast and triggered a nuclear disaster that turned nearby communities into ghost towns.
Residents along the coast gathered outdoors to remember the tragedy as sirens wailed at 2.46pm, the moment the magnitude-9.0 offshore earthquake that set off the tsunami struck on March 11 2011.
The tsunami overwhelmed sea walls and washed away buildings, cars and entire neighbourhoods as it swept inland.
It knocked out power at the seaside Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, causing partial meltdowns in three reactors.
Prince Akishino, the second son of Japanese Emperor Akihito, expressed hope that the tsunami would raise awareness and help prevent or mitigate damage from future natural disasters.
“It is my earnest hope… that we hand down the knowledge to future generations in order to protect many people from the dangers of disasters,” he said.
Separately, several hundred people observed a moment of silence and made offerings at an altar set up in Hibiya Park in central Tokyo.
Cleaning up the still-radioactive Fukushima nuclear plant site remains a daunting challenge that is expected to take 30 to 40 years.
