March 11th, 2012
12:48 AM ET

Prayers, tears as Japan marks 1 year since massive earthquake

apan gathered Sunday amid tears, prayers and a moment of silence to mark one year since a massive earthquake and tsunami killed thousands and triggered a nuclear crisis.

Throngs nationwide observed a moment of silence at 2:46 p.m. local time (12:46 a.m. ET), the exact time the earth shook on March 11, 2011.

The 9.0-magnitude quake literally shifted the earth's axis and unleashed a wall of water that swept away lives, homes and sent millions of people fleeing for higher ground.

Nearly 16,000 people died and 3,000 others remain missing.

Later Sunday, citizens will continue to mark the anniversary across the country, with a main ceremony at the New National Theatre in Tokyo. Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda is expected to attend and offer remarks.

He recently addressed rebuilding efforts, which represent Japan's greatest challenge since the end of World War II. Total damage is estimated at about 25 million yen, or roughly $300 billion so far.

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Filed under: Japan • World
soundoff (24 Responses)
  1. david

    Looks like a game of whackamole in here. Ha ha. And you musta got him @ ???

    March 11, 2012 at 8:12 pm | Report abuse |
  2. Mary

    If you value your life david... Move on. These people can be brutal. They are like hawks. If ya don't join the click and agree with them ... you end up getting *pecked* when ever you enter.

    March 11, 2012 at 8:15 pm | Report abuse |
  3. Jeremy

    Yea mary i just read some of your posts.

    March 11, 2012 at 8:27 pm | Report abuse |
  4. david

    yea i saw some to @ jeremy, sounded like 2 different marys almost.

    March 11, 2012 at 8:30 pm | Report abuse |
  5. hamsta

    how you doin chrissy?ya i kind of dont like those light bulbs either.they contain mercury which is a real hazardous material.all this carbon talk is hogwash.even that crap about co2 poisoning the ocean.i have 3 fish tanks in my house and i use co2 to make algae grow to feed my suckerfish.

    March 11, 2012 at 8:50 pm | Report abuse |
  6. chrissy

    Aww sorry hamsta, wasnt ignoring you this was the first time ive checked back on this thread is all. But have a good night.

    March 12, 2012 at 2:12 am | Report abuse |
  7. Sky Watcher

    You should take part in a contest for one of the highest quality sites on the net. I most certainly will highly recommend this web site!

    August 13, 2012 at 7:15 pm | Report abuse |
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