Shabbar R. Sagarwala

Shabbar R. Sagarwala Department of Architecture Graduate School of Engineering University of Tokyo MDesS (Harvard GSD ''09) サガワラ　シャバー　ラザ 東京大学大学院工学系研究科建築学専攻・都市建築史・博士課 Dear friends and colleagues, I’ve been here in Tokyo for about a year on a Monbukagakusho Scholarship funded by the Japanese Government. I’m researching Japanese urbanization and architecture for my Doctoral degree at Tokyo University, a tangent of the research I had started at the Graduate School of Design at Harvard two years ago. I have written an account of my experience of the earthquake below, which I have also spoken about in several telephone and Skype interviews with the American and Canadian media over the past week (I’ve included links to the interviews at the end of this message): I started my day at home in Setagaya (Western Tokyo), working on a letter for the Japanese Consulate in Toronto about my year so far in Tokyo, so I didn’t get on the train as early as I normally do. I boarded the commuter train at my local station and headed to Shinjuku at about 2:15pm. I have two transfers and about an 1 hour and 15 minute commute as I live in the West end of the city and Tokyo University is in Central Tokyo. I boarded the Marunochi line on the Tokyo Metro at about 2:35pm and we headed towards Yotsuya where I would be transferring to the Namboku line. About three-quarters of the way through the commute, an alarm went off in the train and everything came to a very abrupt stop. Announcements in Japanese reported a major earthquake was underway and all service had to be halted. What I thought to be the train swaying from the intertia of stopping so quickly was actually the 7.2 earthquake, gradually getting stronger and stronger. People began yelling and a child crying as the train rocked violently in the tunnel – everyone held on to whatever they could as it seemed as though we were loosing our footing beneath us. It felt as though the tunnel was going to collapse about us as a groaning sound mixed in with the sound of metal clanging,….it was one of the most frightening experiences of my life with thoughts of being buried alive going through my head. We lurched forward and side to side but everyone seemed relatively calm now, just concerned faces and a sense that the worst was over. Thankfully the shaking subsided to a gentler roll and then finally about 4-5 minutes later the shaking subsided. We were stuck in the tunnel for what felt like hours but was actually only about 15 minutes. They announced again that there was a significant delay but we may be able to move forward to Yotsuya 3-chome station, which was only a little bit further ahead. Another announcement urged everyone to leave the train immediately when we arrived, and we all breathed a collective sigh of relief and calmly exited the train. The area around the turnstiles was already filled with people trying to make phone calls and make their way out of the station. It was all very orderly and polite, with guards pointing people to exits and people apologizing as they had to squeeze by with larger parcels or bags. I made it to the surface as thousands of other commuters poured out into the streets. Traffic was at a standstill in one direction but moving smoothly the other way for some reason. Most people were looking at their phones or trying to make desperate calls to no avail, as service was disrupted all over the city already. I was able to write an email and send it to my family over the data network which was still up and running, somehow. I leaned up against a handrail at the station exit and decided to get my bearings before continuing on foot. After a few minutes I could feel the handrail moving against my back, slowly at first and then faster in a nauseating roll. I pulled away and then the big earthquake hit, much stronger and sustained than the first one in the train. I could feel the ground give beneath me and actually start to push me upwards…..I thought that beneath me were layers of underground city and tunnels which could easily collapse, so I rushed away from the station exit. Many others ran towards the street and began looking upwards at buildings that were around 7-10 storeys high. I got to a road guardrail and held on, looking at the buildings sway like palm trees in the wind. It was a completely surreal experience, watching as buildings leaned into the street and then back, as if made of rubber or some strange pliable material. Everyone in the shadow of the buildings quickly retreated back from the sidewalks and poured into the busy avenue, where cars were still driving by at high speed. I jumped to the other side of the guardrail and then windows began flinging open and light fixtures swung crashing into walls and unopened windows. I looked back to the street and saw the traffic lights swinging as well, large utility poles as well bobbing back and forth. I stood there for quite a while, I can’t remember how long as the realization of what had happened began to sink in. I decided to get out of the crowded Yotsuya area and find shelter at Tokyo University which was about a 2 hour walk from where I was at that moment. Throngs of people crowded the sidewalks from Yotsuya to Iidabashi, an endless parade of humanity trying to find their way home or to some kind of shelter. A cold wind whipped through the streets and clouds moved in, threatening rain. I walked brusquely and made it to Iidabashi, then Ichigaya and then Korakuen stations, each station crowded with thousands of people lining the streets, bridges and entrances. People looked back at their office buildings with amazement and fear, probably wondering how on earth their building had survived such a severe earthquake. I couldn’t believe it either – most of the city seemed intact but there were certainly injuries and probably damage somewhere. I could hear the drone of helicopters overhead surveying the city and there seemed to be sirens at every street corner. When I arrived at the Tokyo Dome, there was garbage littered everywhere on the streets. I ascended the stairs to the upper plaza, which was a shortcut to my University, looking down at the entrances to the auditorium. Paper and garbage were strewn everywhere with workers cleaning up the mess. Garbage cans had been tossed around by the earthquake and apparently all the ticketing booths had spewed out paper. In the plaza above, images of the tsunami were already being broadcast on a big screen TV, cars, trucks, and ships floating around in a mass of water like so much debris. I stood there for a few minutes, watching the devastation and then continued on my walk towards school. There were long lines at every pay phone and people crowded outside stations waiting for word on the train service. All trains were stopped for the evening, leaving millions of people stranded (apparently, almost 10 million people use the Tokyo Metro and commuter lines to get to and from work everyday). On my walk through Korakuen, there was one building with enormous cracks in it’s facade, the sidewalk cordoned off with yellow tape. I took many photos of the aftermath with my phone and kept walking as the temperature was dropping and rain falling intermittently. I finally arrived at my University, made it to the ATM and then tried to buy food at the local convenience store. Long lines and bare shelves awaited me as almost everything was already cleaned out. I grabbed a yogurt, sliced apple, a brownie and two drinks and hoped for the best. On campus people were walking around dazed, inspecting the buildings and huddling together against the cold wind. I got into my building to hear an emergency announcement saying that the worst was over, but the government had ordered everyone to stay indoors as they expected strong aftershocks and possibly another big earthquake in the evening. I stayed in my laboratory with my colleagues all evening, with the ground shaking at various levels of intensity throughout. We experienced aftershocks as large as full-fledged earthquakes which shook the building and the bookshelves, light fixtures and computers. It was difficult to sleep but at least I was safer in that big bunker of a concrete building rather than outside. Many commuters trekked back to far-flung places around greater Tokyo, but I think it would be nearly impossible for me to get home as I have a 5 hour walk to Setagaya from Hongo in Central Tokyo. I hoped the aftershocks would stop soon and that the Metro service would resume in the morning. I’m very concerned about the situation and had a difficult weekend after the quake as the situation in Fukushima continues to spiral out of control. I haven’t been able to sleep well because of the aftershocks, and my days have been spent watching the news and reading conflicting reports from the Japanese, American and British media. I left Tokyo on Tuesday night and I’m now in the Kansai area (in Nara now) watching events unfold from afar. I am near the Kansai Airport and will depart by the weekend if things don’t improve by then. I sincerely hope this disaster is averted and we can all return to our daily lives soon. When I left on the Shinkansen from Tokyo, there were many families with children leaving (I’m assuming they are especially concerned as children are most susceptible to radiation). There is also widespread panic as people have started stockpiling food, toilet paper, batteries and other essentials within the Tokyo area – I had to visit many grocery stores to get enough items to make dinner as the shelves were already bare. In the meantime, Nara was peaceful and serene. It was a nice mini-vacation away from the chaos ensuing further north. In relative comfort, my concerned drifted to the people north of Tokyo who have borne the brunt of the earthquake and tsunami. Shabbar R. Sagarwala Links to interviews with the Canadian media and the Harvard Alumni website: CTV Canada AM: http://watch.ctv.ca/news/latest/quake-aftermath/#clip432600 CTV News: http://watch.ctv.ca/news/latest/massive-quake/#clip431554 Harvard Alumni in Japan link: http://alumni.harvard.edu/stories/harvard-alumni-japan