Rev. George Young, a missionary called by Cascade Fellowship Christian Reformed Church, is spending a second night in his car at a camp in Ushibori, Japan, as he is not comfortable sleeping inside. There has been a lot of damage to roads in the area, so he did not want to try to get back to the house in the dark. The northbound highways are closed, and many local roads are damaged.
Many areas, including Choshi, Hitachinaka and Urayasu, have no utilities yet, and how long this situation will continue is anyone's guess. At this point, George is the only Christian Reformed World Missions staff member affected to this degree. His home in Kamisu is northeast of Tokyo, closer to the epicenter and the nuclear power plant that is at risk. It is also a port community. The extent of the damage there is still unknown. Mission office in Japan
Most of the Christian Reformed World Missions staff lives in Tokyo where there was damage and continued disruption to transportation networks. The initial quake threw filing cabinets around the room of the mission office.
Aftershock activity seems to have slowed down considerably now. The tsunami warning has been downgraded, but the evacuation ordered in Fukushima near the nuclear plants has been expanded from a 10 kilometer radius to 20 (about 12 miles), as there has been and continues to be much radioactive material being released outside the facility. At this point, this doesn't affect any CRWM staff directly, though everyone has been asked to use electricity conservatively because the generating facilities have been compromised. The nuclear plant is a little more than 100 miles from the Young home.
George has 10 gallons of well water a local fellow gave him and kerosene for heat. He will lead a small worship time in the home of Choshi Church members Ryosuke and Sachiko Sakamoto tomorrow, and perhaps after that make his way back to his house in Kamisu.
Updates from CRC News
Christian Reformed World Missions in Japan
