This is the story in my parents area. For people who live farther from the centre, it took a long time to get them back.
No water supply - for 4 days
The city set temporary water supply centres. My dad walked for 20 minutes to get 3-4 litres every day.
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| water supply truck. People queued for a few hours to get water. |
No electricity - for 3 days
They had only 3 hours before sunset after the earthquake. Everyone was rushing to tidy up things and do whatever they could to. My mum said that it was like a race against the sunset. They lived under the candle lights. I saw candle wax stains here and there in their house.
No gas - for 5 weeks
My parents' house had changed to an all-electric system from last year and they don't need gas. My parents' neighbours couldn't take a bath/shower until the gas supply was back. My parents house became their community's "bathhouse" for 5 weeks.
Limited amount of food - for 1 month
No milk or yoghurt - dairies seemed to be a big problem. Japanese favourite "Natto" (not so many fans among non-Japanese...) - fermented soy beans weren't in the market. Fresh vegetables were limited. As soon as they were on the shelf in the store, all went so quickly. Now it seems to come back to normal, but the ones grown in the nuclear power plant area have been hard to sell - people are worried about the contamination in the vegetables and have avoided them.
Limited amount of petrol for 1 month
You needed to queue for hours and were only allowed to top up 10 litres at a time. The price of the petrol has soared. When I went to the petrol station, I needed to pay 23 pence more than usual per litre.
Shops
Some are still closed - the ones currently closed mainly have building safety problems.
Some of them have received a "red card" from the city - the order of demolishing the building.
Radiation problem
I didn't hear much news about it. The public criticise the government; they kept changing their opinion. I suspect that some information is covered up. My mum was worried about the radiation and hung the washing in the house and she wouldn't open the windows. Most people wear masks all the time. We don't have enough information about what is right and what is wrong. People still live being threatened by the danger.
Community
People shared information and food. When my mum received food from my brother in Tokyo, she cooked them and gave some to neighbours. When one of my neighbours found bread sold in a shop, she bought a lot and delivered to my parents' and other houses. They shared information about which supermarket re-opened or when etc. My mum has realised how much the bonding in the community is important. This disaster has taught us something we tend to forget in the contemporary life; you don't live by yourself; you live your life by supporting each other.
Limited information resource
The only information they could get for 3 days was from a radio. When I had been horrified by the overwhelming Tsunami video in the UK, my parents were too busy tidying up the house and dealing with never ending aftershocks. My dad told me that when he heard the radio news saying that 200 dead bodies were found on the shore, he thought that a passenger ferry or something was brought down by the wave, and he never imagined that the Tsunami intruded inland this far. My parents were so shocked to watch the video with their own eyes - that was 3 days after the disaster.
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