At least 2,400 deaths have been reported in the wake of a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan on Friday.
The number is expected to rise as officials grapple with the damage, and thousands more are missing or displaced from homes, according to the Associated Press.
The State Department issued a travel advisory Monday that urges U.S. citizens to avoid nonessential travel to Japan.
When the quake hit at 2:46 p.m., recent UCLA alumnus Andy Ng was teaching in a classroom in Sendai, a coastal city in northern Japan.
“It was intense,” Ng said. “It was hard to stand up.”
He and his students ran outside to an open area ““ the school’s field. Then Ng and the other teachers did a head count to make sure all the students were accounted for.
Not long after, they heard a tsunami warning on the radio. They moved the students up to the third and fourth floor of the school. Community members from the surrounding area piled inside, too.
Ng watched as waves rushed toward the school, one of the closest schools to the coast in Sendai. He said he saw cars speeding away to outpace the water. As the tsunami approached, people drove up to the school and ran inside.
“It was pretty frightening. No one knew what was going to happen,” Ng said.
The water stopped right outside of the school’s campus. On the field where the students had been standing before, there was at least one meter of water, and he could no longer see the ground, Ng said.
Since the school was designated as a refugee site, Ng immediately became involved in helping the relief efforts. He and his coworkers gathered emergency supplies, directed people into classrooms and tried to keep order. Relief workers brought in food and water.
Ng, who graduated in 2010 with a degree in Asian American studies and sociology, said he was impressed by the way his community has come together. But much needs to be done.
Ng will remain in Japan to finish his year of teaching while continuing to help relief efforts at his school, he said.
The tsunami came so quickly after the quake that many people could not evacuate, Ng said.
“I’m thankful that I’m still here today,” he said.
Most of the damage witnessed so far by Ng has been in the coastal regions. His inland apartment was not affected, he said.
But even more than 200 miles south in Tokyo, UCLA student Bryan Villa felt the earthquake.
Villa, who is studying abroad at the International Christian University, was in his apartment when his building started to shake severely.
Although Tokyo was not affected by the earthquake or tsunami nearly as much as northern Japan, people have been slow to resume normal routines, Villa said.
His school closed its campus for one day after the earthquake. Subway lines also shut down, but by Sunday most of the trains were up and running again, Villa said.
A widespread feeling of panic still remains in the city, and Villa said many people are scared because they think another bigger earthquake is still coming. Shelves at the supermarket are empty because people are stocking up on supplies, he said. He added that unsubstantiated rumors are flying around about acid rain coming.
Melissa Brymer, director of terrorism and disaster programs at the UCLA Center for Child Traumatic Stress, said this type of response to an earthquake is normal. Because earthquakes have aftershocks, people remain anxious long after the initial disaster. Concern about one of Japan’s nuclear power plants is only making people’s anxiety worse, she added.
There have been three explosions at nuclear plants, but most of them only damaged the outside structure of the plants, said William McBride, a radiation oncology professor. Only one plant has released a significant amount of radiation, and even that amount is relatively small ““ it is comparable to radiation exposure from an X-ray, McBride said.
Residents in areas surrounding the nuclear reactors have been evacuated.
Villa said he and his friends feel uncertain about what will happen next, especially after hearing about the damage to the nuclear reactors.
“I keep telling myself everything is going to be fine, but each time I check the news, something worse has happened,” Villa said.
Villa said he plans on finishing his term in Tokyo.
Tsunami waves also caused damage in Northern California, reaching coastal cities around 8 a.m. Friday. Waves ripped apart the harbor in Crescent City and sank boats in Santa Cruz, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
Officials estimate that damage from the waves will cost the state at least $50 million, according to the Los Angeles Times.
One man is still missing after being swept away by the waves. The search has been called off.