Divers Still Removing Tsunami Debris In Worst-hit Prefectures

A rusty desk recovered from the seabed here speaks volumes of the cleanup task confronting volunteer divers as the fifth anniversary of the earthquake and tsunami disaster approaches.Three members of Sanriku Volunteer Divers removed the desk from the floor at Sakihama fishing port on February 6 , 2016 in Ofunato, Japan. "We intend to continue the work until we start seeing swarms of fish swimming amid seaweed that spreads like a forest,” said diving instructor Hiroshi Sato, 41. The native of Hanamaki, Iwate Prefecture, heads the Sanriku Volunteer Divers that was set up in April 2011. The group combs disaster-hit Sanriku coastal waters for household and office debris swept out to sea by the tsunami unleashed by the magnitude-9.0 Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011. A total of 4,000 divers have participated in the efforts.