Karleen C. Chinen
Commentary
Japan was hit hard last month with two major disasters — killer Typhoon Hagibis, which hit northern Honshu, taking lives, and a devastating fire in Okinawa that burned historic Shuri Castle to the ground. The people of Hawai‘i are responding with aloha to both tragedies.
On Oct. 12, Typhoon Hagibis made landfall at Izu Peninsula, west of Tökyö. It was the most devastating typhoon to hit Japan’s Kantö region since 1958, causing massive flooding and wind and rain damage. At least 88 people lost their lives in the typhoon — seven people are still reported missing. More than 74,000 homes suffered massive flooding and over 17,000 were either destroyed or suffered damage. Nearly 4,000 people were forced to take refuge in evacuation shelters.