On March 11, the Scientology Volunteer Ministers mobilized a team to assess the damage caused by last month's 9.0 earthquake and the tsunami to determine how to proceed with the disaster response. Four Volunteer Minister groups deployed to the northeast of Japan to help survivors in Kesennuma (photo) and other areas in the Miyagi Prefecture.

Today, one month after what has become known as Higashi Nihon Daishinsai, "The Eastern Japan Great Earthquake Disaster," some 160,000 displaced persons are still subsisting in makeshift shelters in hundreds of schools, hospitals and public gyms. Scientology Volunteer Ministers have been providing physical and personal relief to survivors for the past month.

A Kesennuma city council member who also heads the disaster response headquarters in Hashikami, thanked the Volunteer Ministers for their effective and unique assistance to the area and urged them to continue.

With roads impassable and relief services stretched to the limits, delivering food and supplies to ill, injured and elderly residents in outlying rural areas around Kesennuma remained a critical but unsolved dilemma for government and civilian relief forces.

The Volunteer Minister disaster relief team, who has operated a shelter in Hashikami Junior High School in Kesennuma for the past month, took on the challenge, proving once again their motto—“Something Can Be Done About It”—isn’t just words.

Volunteer Ministers in Tokyo headquarters organizing help.

A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Miyagi Prefecture at 11:32 p.m. local time on Thursday. Evacuation orders were issued for homes along the northeast coastline.

In Tokyo, buildings shook violently for a full minute during the quake and electricity was cut although there were no reports of serious damage. And while sirens went off in Japan’s coastal cities, warning of a tsunami, alerts were cancelled ninety minutes later.

All Volunteer Minister groups are fine and prepare to take on more evacuees in the shelters they are working in.

Volunteer Minister groups in Northern Japan, from the top: 1) Kesennuma, 2) Onagawa, 3) Myiagi (district), 4) Sendai and 5) Watari

Tokyo/Sendai

We just welcomed six new Volunteer Ministers to the Japan team! Four are headed to the disaster zone and two will work from the Tokyo headquarters.

Ayal Lindeman (left) has worked as a Volunteer Minister and EMT in disaster areas for many years.

Hello from Japan. This trip has been truly amazing.

We are giving lots of assists* and showing people on how to do assists. It is a bit cold but spirits are high. We have approval to travel as emergency responders so we can move on roads and highways only open to that traffic.

An Australian Scientology Volunteer Minister administering Assist.

Some 80 Volunteer Ministers are active on the ground in Tokyo handling food and supply logistics and helping displaced people. Additional groups of Volunteer Ministers have been dispatched to Northeast Japan and are working in shelters in Onagawa, Watari, Natori, Sendai and Kesennuma. Within the first ten days of the disaster we have reached close to 8,000 people. In addition to delivering Assists* and helping with logistics and distribution, our teams are also training people daily on basic Volunteer Minister technology.

Scientology Volunteer Ministers reviewing the location of shelters in the Miyagi Prefecture.

Today the Scientology Volunteer Ministers were asked to expand their activities in Onagawa, Miyagi Prefecture (see below). With almost 6,000 reported dead and 6,675 people still missing the region of Miyagi is leading the list of severely affected areas.

Nurse and Scientology Volunteer Minister Ayal Lindeman (center) and team gathered in Tokyo last night.

The next group of specialist-trained Scientology Volunteer Ministers arrived in Tokyo and hit the road early morning to Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture (224 miles/360 kilometers away from Tokyo).