$100 billion damages in Japan powerful quake and tsunami: Phl Senate expressed deepest sympathy

SENATE OFFICE, Manila, March 22, 2011-Japan government reported that about $100 billion total losses on the aftermath of the powerful quake and triggered massive tsunami in the said country, including $20 billion in damage to residences and $40 billion in damage to infrastructure such as roads, rails, port facilities and at least three nuclear plants which prompted massive evacuation of the residents of the affected areas and the declaration of a state of emergency.

The March 11 earthquake and tsunami that hit northeastern Japan reported for a total of 21,911 missing, 8,649 death, 4,080 identified bodies and a total of 340,000 evacuees who fled away to the troubled nuclear reactors in Fukushima prefecture yesterday.

Experts said that the powerful earthquake was one of the five largest earthquakes in the world since the modern record-keeping began that triggered massive tsunami waves of up to 10 meters high and washed away 1,800 homes.

Yesterday afternoon, Senator Franklin Drilon personally delivered a resolution to Japanese Ambassador Makoto Katsura and signed the Book of Condolences expressing profound sympathy to the people of Japan in the wake of the recent earthquake and tsunami that struck the country which was adopted last March 14.

Drilon said that the resolution 37 expressed the Philippines’ profound sympathy and sincerest concern and compassion for the people of Japan and its government and the Filipinos admiration for the Japanese people who, although faced with the most severe crisis, possess incredible resilience and courage to overcome destruction and loss.

           

The resolution stated that the Philippines continues to remember, with appreciation, the Government and the people of Japan for all the emergency and humanitarian assistance it had extended to our people during our own times of crises brought about by natural disasters which was sponsored by Senate President Pro-Tempore Jinggoy Estrada, Majority Floor Leader Tito Sotto III and Senators Drilon, Lito Lapid, Gringo Honasan, Legarda and Juan Miguel Zubiri. 

Japan remains to be a major source of official development funds, trade, investment and tourism to the Philippines and remains a top source of assistance for the country accounting for 36 percent or $3.46 billion of the total loan commitments.

A powerful 9 magnitude earthquake hit the east coast of Miyagi Prefecture’s, and devastated the city of Sendai in Honshu on March 11.

Earlier, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and Senator Loren Legarda had also signed the Book of Condolences at the Japanese embassy. (Jason de Asis)