How Does It Feel To Die In A Tsunami?

This eerie, alarming article is taken from a book, Ghosts of the Tsunami, an account of the 2011 tsunami that hit Japan. Tsunamis cause high rates of fatalities compared to other kinds of disasters, and this account shows us their horror in detail. It tells the story of Teruo Konno, the head deputy of the local development section at a branch of Ishinomaki city hall. He barely survived the tsunami, and this is his story. 

Konno had prepared for this. "As recently as the previous August, the city government had conducted a drill in which police, fire brigade, and local officials acted out their roles in case of an earthquake and tsunami." But when the earthquake he prepared for came, it still overwhelmed their well laid plans. The sights, sounds, and smells of the tsunami changed dramatically as they realized the power of the tsunami upon them. Water eventually rushed into the government building and swept Konno away. “It’s true what people say. You see the faces of your family, of your friends. It’s true—I remember it. All those faces. The last words in my mind were, ‘I’m done for—I’m sorry.’ It’s a feeling different from fear. Just a frank feeling of sorrow, and regret.”

Konno narrowly survives the tsunami, and sees his community laid to waste. He dives into relief work in the aftermath.