A Message From our Area Representative of Episcopal Relief and Development

March 13, 2011
Our thoughts and prayers are with those affected by the 8.9-magnitude earthquake and resulting tsunami that struck Japan in the northeastern coastal city of Sendai at 2:46pm local time (12:46am EST). The effects of the disaster are widespread, affecting churches and partners around the Pacific region, including Hawai’i and the west coast of the US. Episcopal Relief & Development staff have reached out to local partners and are standing by, ready to offer assistance.
Friday’s earthquake is the most powerful to hit Japan since officials began keeping records in the late 1800s. More than 100 aftershocks have followed, the strongest measuring 7.1.
“I have been trying to collect the information from the provincial office and from all the dioceses of NSKK [Nippon Sei-Ko-Kai; the Anglican-Episcopal Church of Japan],” wrote the Most Rev. Nathaniel M. Uematsu, Primate of Japan & Bishop of Hokkaido. “Because of the scale of damage and devastation, our communication has had great difficulty, and I have not heard anything from the Diocese of Tohoku which has been hit most by the earthquakes and tsunamis, and I am very concerned for Bishop John Kato and churches and people in his diocese.”
Fires have broken out in 80 locations, and four nuclear plants in the quake zone have been shut down for safety. The death toll continues to rise. So far, officials have confirmed over 1,300 deaths.
The tsunami has swept away cars, ships and buildings in Japan, sometimes depositing them miles away. The US National Weather Service has issued tsunami warnings for at least 50 countries and territories around the Pacific.
Please continue to pray for those affected. To help those in need, please donate to the Disaster Response Fund.
Reid Joyner
Episcopal Relief & Development Coordinator
Diocese of North Carolina
erd-nc@hotmail.com; 704/554-6359

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