Japan Before and After (And There Is Still Lots of After to Come)

“The stress on the Japanese people continues to compound as concerns about the radiation leaks from the Fukushima nuclear plant continue to rise.” After you look at the pictures at the link, you’ll realize that one morning in Japan after the earthquake and tsunami, someone walked into their affected neighborhood and saw a rather large boat on top of their house. In the last three months, you have likely seen long shots or aerial images of the disaster damage in Japan. But you probably have not seen a series of photos like this, which show close shots of specific spots along the Japanese coast and affected areas inland shortly after the earthquake/tsunami, and then three months after. Three things about this gallery are really striking. First, the damage and debris in the ‘before’ shots. Second, the amazing amount of cleanup and return to visual normalcy in the ‘after’ shots. And, third, the huge amount of cleanup and rebuilding work which still needs to be done. In fact, some of the spots in the after images look nearly as hopeless and woeful as they did right after the disaster. Still, hope here is the operative word, and we expect that as the months wear on, more and more images coming out of the disaster area in Japan will show us a rebuilding and reestablishment of normal, happy lives. (Bit Rebels –Before and After the Disaster)