We drove out of our neighbourhood and down into town. We drove back along the route we drove home on just after the earthquake hit. At one point we had to go around a man hole that had raised itself almost half a metre out of the ground. After 3 days, pretty much all the hazards and damage to the roads were clearly marked with road cones so we felt a bit better even if the route was rather a lot more bumpier than it used to be. We got to route 49 that takes you through Yoshima (sorry more boring details for my readers who used to live in Iwaki) and quickly ran into a huge traffic jam. I started to get panicky again as I was worried about our petrol with being caught in traffic jams when we still didn't know when we would be able to fill up again. So I told DH to turn around and to take a route that avoided as many supermarkets and petrol stations as possible. So we took the route that goes through the Yoshima Industrial Area where DH's work is. We came across a few big holes in the road there too. DH's company looked mostly ok but there were a few broken windows. We were certainly the only people who looked like we might be "fleeing" since we had so much stuff in our car. Everyone else looked like they were out for a Sunday drive.
When we got back onto route 49 heading for Koriyama the road was smoother, there was little traffic and we cruised along easily as there are no petrol stations or supermarkets there to attract traffic. We stopped at Hirata rest area about 40 minutes into our trip and found they had running water. I guiltily flushed after one use! Lots of other people appeared to be enjoying the flush toilets too. We reached Koriyama after what would have to be the smoothest and quickest trip there ever. The further away we got from the coast, the smoother the roads became. We started to relax. But there was still one hurdle which was to get through Koriyama city and the traffic jams there with enough petrol to get far enough to where the petrol supply was still ok.
We got as far as the big Nitori/Yamada Denki intersection when we got caught up in one. That was when we ran into CBS reporters who got out of a taxi just in front of us and were trying to film something - probably about the lines for petrol as there was no damage to be seen on that road. So I said hello to them as we were just sitting there in the car and they did an interview with us. Not too much longer after that the traffic started to move again as the petrol station had obviously run out. Then we headed towards Inawashiro, a beautiful lake, and DH and I let ourselves start to relax a bit more. We were heading away from the power station and the prevailing wind was blowing in the opposite direction, out to sea, even though another explosion had just been reported and we hadn't traveled that far away from the power station yet.
We stopped at 7-11 near Inawashiro and Sebastian played in the snow a bit. We were so lucky that the weather had been warm to that point as the roads were clear and dry. The western side of Japan gets a lot of snow in winter and could easily have been impassable.
When we left Aizu, we encountered more and more petrol stations still selling petrol and waited only 5 minutes to fill up our car. Then I really started to relax and tried to think of our "escape" as more of a road trip. That night we made it all the way to Kanazawa city as you already know and then the next night we were in Tottori. It was such a relief to get here and rest. Sebastian was a model passenger the whole way. We were so proud of him. He didn't get sick once and spent most of the time snoring his head off.
After 3 days here in Tottori we are feeling a lot more normal. The normality of life here helps with that. As far as we can tell, there is still no water in Iwaki, no supplies getting through. All of the people I have been worrying about there since we left have now also left town for the comfort of areas where gas, food and water are readily available. I don't blame them. Even without the threat of the power station, it is not a nice situation to be in.
DH's company extended the "holiday" to the end of next week. It is going to take a long time get back to normal. With half of the city dispersed, it could be weeks until things become normal again - also not thinking about stupid power station. At oresent the radiation levels reported there are 1/600th of an xray if you spend one hour outside. The wind is blowing north so any radiation is being blown away from the city at this point. I have just seen on the TV that they have got power back and one of the reactors pumps is now working again. Finally a piece of good news.
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