Friday, March 13, was the five-year anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake that triggered a massive tsunami. 18,000 people lost their lives and almost 200,000 are still displaced. Most of the heavily damaged areas have not been rebuilt.

Following the disaster, many spontaneous roadside memorials were created. In Otsuchi, Iwate prefecture, a phone booth was turned into a memorial. People can make a call to their dead relatives from the “phone of the wind”, or write them a message there.

For a brief story, photos and video:

Google search the link below, choose the listing (in Japanese) on the top of the page and click “translate this page”.

http://www6.nhk.or.jp/special/detail/index.html?aid=20160310