Hoosiers With Ties To Japan Worry About Loved Ones
Social Media, E-Mail, Phone Contact Sought
Posted: 03/11/2011
Last Updated:
802 days ago
Some Indiana residents are watching developments in Japan, in Hawaii and on the West Coast after a massive earthquake and tsunami with concern for friends, family and co-workers in those areas.People were using Facebook, Twitter and e-mail to communicate with loved ones in the stricken areas, 6News' Julie Pursley reported.
Special Section:
Japan Earthquake, Tsunami
Pictures of the devastation wrought by the earthquake and tsunami gripped people in Indianapolis, especially those with connections in the Pacific.John Lajiness, who works for the Japan-America Society of Indiana, said his in-laws live in Japan."The earthquake happened off the Pacific side of Japan, and my relatives live on the Sea of Japan side, roughly 100 miles (away), so they escaped the worst of it," Lajiness said.Lajiness received word Friday morning that the family is OK."I got an e-mail from my mother-in-law's cell phone that said she is all right. They've lost power, and they're not sure when they're going to get it back," Lajiness said.Amanda Johnson, a Hoosier native now in Hawaii, said the waves were fierce when the tsunami struck."We've had up to 8-foot surges. Right now, they feel that's the worst we'll get," Johnson said.Johnson didn't see the waves because they came in before sunrise."I could hear the waves coming in, but given my elevation, it wasn't scary," she said.Indianapolis-based companies Eli Lilly and Simon Properties have employees in Japan. They are monitoring the situation there and are awaiting full reports from that country.Task Force One, Indiana's search and rescue team, said the Federal Emergency Management Agency put it on standby should it be needed on the West Coast.
