Before and After: One Year After the Japan Earthquake
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In this March 15, 2011, file photo, a Japanese survivor of the earthquake and tsunami rides his bicycle through the leveled city of Minamisanriku, Japan. The tsunami that ripped across Japan's coastline last year left more than 20,000 killed and missing and ravaged this fishing town, sweeping away nearly every business and every job, and burying bodies beneath the splintered wood of shattered homes.
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A Japanese car drives through the leveled city of Minamisanriku, Japan. It has been one year since a huge earthquake and tsunami smashed Japan's coastline, killed around 19,000 people, and left more than half of Minamisanriku's residents dead or homeless. But while the streets are free of rubble, rebuilding has barely begun, leaving those who remain anxious about what the future holds.
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Sigo Hatareyama works to clean out what is left of his house on March 21, 2011, in Kesennuma, Japan. An extremely strong 9.0 magnitude earthquake struck Japan offshore on March 11, 2011, at 2:46 p.m. local time, triggering a tsunami wave of up to ten meters, which engulfed large parts of north-eastern Japan and also damaged the Fukushima nuclear plant, causing the worst nuclear crisis in decades.
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The same location as seen ahead of the one year anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Kesennuma, Japan.
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In this March 15, 2011, photo, Japanese vehicles pass through the ruins of the leveled city of Minamisanriku. Last year's devastating earthquake and tsunami destroyed more than half the buildings in this once-scenic, blue-collar fishing town, knocked out power and water, and left residents wondering if their community could ever rebuild.
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Japanese vehicles pass through the ruins of the leveled city of Minamisanriku. A year after the earthquake, there are hints of progress; the main roads are free of debris, and some temporary houses have been built. But many in Minamisanriku, and elsewhere across Japan's battered coastline, remain in a state of limbo.
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In this March 17, 2011, file photo, Japanese residents of Kesennuma pass through a road that was cleared by a bulldozer through the ruins of the city. Those charged with clearing the debris left by last year's earthquake and tsunami faced a monstrous task: towering piles of twisted metal and wood, boats perched atop roofs, mountains of family heirlooms, sodden furniture and children's toys.
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Japanese residents of Kesennuma cross a road in the destroyed part of the city. One year after the powerful earthquake and tsunami, the streets have been cleared and the wreckage removed from town centers. But the process of disposing of all that debris has been slow, with much of it still sitting in huge mountains in temporary holding areas.
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In this March 19, 2011, photo, residents of Onagawa in northeastern Japan walk down an empty street. Last year's devastating tsunami sent many residents of this fishing community running toward the safest place they knew - the local nuclear power plant. Outside their safe haven, the monstrous wall of water destroyed nearly everything in its path.
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Two officials walk along a street in the tsunami and earthquake destroyed town of Onagawa. One year later, the task of rebuilding homes and lives has barely begun.
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In this March 28, 2011, photo, a ship sits in a destroyed residential neighborhood in Kesennuma, Japan. The tsunami that slammed into Japan's coastline last year flung boats onto roofs, washed away homes and left this major fishing port a shell of its former self.
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A ship remains in a destroyed residential neighborhood in Kesennuma. A year after the tsunami, many of the boats carried inland by the wall of water have been removed. But some, like this one, remain, providing a stark reminder of nature's fearsome power.
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Destroyed vehicles lie near the rubble after the earthquake
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The same location as seen ahead of the one year anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Kesennuma, Japan.
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In this March 19, 2011, photo, Tayo Kitamura kneels in the street to caress and talk to the wrapped body of her mother Kuniko Kitamura after Japanese firemen discovered the dead woman inside the ruins of her home in Onagawa.
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A newly built home sits at the site of the now-cleared but destroyed area of in Onagawa. A few homes have been rebuilt in the year since an earthquake and tsunami roared across Japan's coastline, but most communities remain unrecognizable, and their residents' futures uncertain.
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Police search and rescue crews dig through rubble on March 19, 2011.
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The same location one year later.
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Destroyed vehicles lie near the rubble after the earthquake and tsunami devastated the area.
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The same location one year later.
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