Back in 2011, Tetsuya Tadano, an eleven-year-old boy, was sitting in his class. Arms on his table while diligently listening to his teacher. Outside, other students enjoyed the last school hours of that Friday. Younger pupils were already boarding the school bus to head home, while most of the older students, like Tetsuya and his fifth-grade classmates, were still inside finishing their lessons.
At 2:46 pm, suddenly the earth was shaking ferociously—
“Stay still and lay low!”, “crawl under the desk!”, “ hold on to something!” could be heard shouting by the teachers amid the earthquake. The students complied calmly, trusting the guidance. Earthquakes were common in Japan, and all school teachers were trained to handle such situations. Monthly earthquake and fire drills ensured everyone was always prepared.
Under his desk, Tetsuya could hear the roaring of the earth—it felt like a deja vu because two days earlier Kitakami was also hit by an earthquake. The only difference is that today’s tremor was a major one—a gigantic 9.1 scale Richter.
Six minutes passed, and the tremor finally stopped. Swiftly, the teacher directed their students to wear their plastic helmets and assemble in the schoolyard. It was mid-March in Kitakami, and the lingering winter winds made everyone shiver as they stood in the open. A few pupils vomited due to the huge earth convulsion, while teachers patrolled to ensure everyone was accounted for.
There were more aftershocks after the first one which finally ended at 3:14 pm. However, the teachers were still indecisive about what action they should take. Toshiya Ishizaka, the deputy headmaster, was responsible for updating the emergency protocol in the Education Plan but had neglected this duty. The outdated safety instructions puzzled them with their vague language. Despite repeated tsunami warnings from the Meteorological Agency and a car with a loudspeaker urging evacuation to higher ground, Ishizaka insisted on staying. Most relied on their past experience and high hopes, believing the Kitakami River would serve as a barrier to the ocean, keeping their location safe.
Junji Edo, one of the senior teachers suddenly yelled from the school, “To the hill! Run to the hill!” He was apparently closely monitoring the update from the radio. Some of the pupils who heard this began to run to the hill. They were familiar with the path since they had gone up there to cultivate shiitake mushrooms for their science project. Overruling Edo’s warning, other teachers ordered the students to return to the school area.
At 3:30 pm, looking paled, Ishizaka who had not been seen for a while at schoolyard came back and finally stated that “a tsunami seems to be coming”. Hearing this, the teachers immediately arranged the students into a line, with the older group at the forefront, including Tetsuya. Despite the imminent threat, the teachers insisted on taking the main road, a longer route they believed was safer.
The roaring sound of the approaching wave grew louder. From the front of the line, Tetsuya saw the black water with white foam streaming rapidly into the river. He was terrified by the fact they were walking to the source of danger, his heart was thumping and his survival instinct kicked in. Along with his friend, Daisuke who was also on the front line, they turned around and fled, abandoning the line. Some of the students were following them, and most of the pupils who put their trust in the hands of adults froze in horror watching the wall of waves mercilessly running faster toward them.
It was a life-and-death moment. Tetsuya ran as fast as he could until he reached the foothill. The hill was steep, and he struggled not to slip. Daisuke was below him, struggling to climb and falling repeatedly. Aware of that, Tetsuya stretched out his hand and grasped Daisuke’s collar, but he was not strong enough to pull him up. At that moment, the surge of water arrived to get them, it swept Daisuke away and its strong force from behind knocked Tetsuya out.
***
It was unclear how long Tetsuya was unconscious, but when his senses returned, he felt something moving above him. Trapped under debris and unable to move he cried for help, “I’m here, beneath you”.
His classmate, Kohei Takahashi, had survived by riding a refrigerator carried by the wave, which had bumped into Tetsuya. Hearing the plead, Kohei pulled Tetsuya up, and together they climbed the hill.
Tetsuya had bruises all over his body and one of his eyes was injured inflicted by his plastic helmet strap. Meanwhile, Kohei broke his wrist and got his skin pricked by thorns.
The two boys then stood in silence, shivering from the cold waiting for help. Their minds were wandering while looking at the moving black water underneath them. The torrent had forever changed their lives and the lives of many others during the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.