YEAR IN REVIEW 2011: Nature takes its toll on Japan

On March 11, a viciously powerful earthquake struck Japan’s northeast coast.

The 9.0-magnitude quake then triggered a deadly tsunami bringing along a second wave of destruction. The damage was unimaginable.

Roughly 23-thousand people were killed or went missing. Towns were swamped and communities were burning from massive fires ignited by the quake.

Workers were still cleaning up the debris six months after the disaster had occurred.

The catastrophe also caused a nuclear crisis at the damaged Fukushima power plant. This exposed countless citizens to the dangers of radiation. An investigation found that Japan had failed to use radiation forecasts at the beginning of the crisis. Health effects from radiation on humans are still a concern to this day.