Lara couple escapes disaster horror in Japan

ERIN PEARSON
LARA couple Kat Clancy and Ryan Herbert are safe at home after fleeing Japan’s earthquake and tsunami crisis.
They flew into Melbourne on Tuesday night after cutting their holiday short amid chaos in the disaster’s aftermath.
Ms Clancy said she left a devistated country behind
“The Japanese people are very reserved people who don’t like to show emotion, so the TV footage we’re seeing is heartbreaking,” she said.
“The country’s in mourning.”
Ms Clancy and her husband initially discussed travelling to the snowfields near the area that was later devastated by the tsunami, but changed their minds at the last minute.
“When the quake hit we were travelling on train from Kanazawa to Osaka and the whole train shook like a V/Line train. Before that we’d spent eight days in Tokyo and were planning to take some day trips up north around Nagano.”
Ms Clancy said friend Mandy Chung, who attended Geelong’s Sacred Heart College and Deakin University, was still in Japan.
Ms Clancy was also worried about the fate of her pregnant host-sister in Japan after reports of radiation leaking from nuclear reactors damaged in the tsunami.
“She lives in Tokyo, so we’re very worried about the radiation,” Ms Clancy said.
“After the earthquake she took a taxi home. It took 10 hours when it usually takes 40 minutes.
“All the trains are cut off and her husband is stuck at work and still can’t get home.
“The place is in shock.”
The Australian Government has advised against travelling to Japan’s Miyagi Prefecture in the country’s north and to be on alert if visiting other parts of Japan.