Yonezawa still stands after Japan's earthquake

MOSES LAKE - Moses Lake's sister city Yonezawa, Japan, was not significantly damaged in Friday's earthquake and resulting tsunami.

Structural damage was minor in the southeastern Japanese city, with no fires from the earthquake, according to the exchange program's Facebook page.

Sendai, located on the coast, was heavily impacted.

Paul Hirai, a member of the Moses Lake-based sister city committee, learned the information from Yukio Seino, owner of the Yonezawa Press in Japan.

Seino visits Moses Lake frequently.

Hirai has not heard if the student exchange visit in July was canceled.

"We haven't heard anything different, but we are progressing and going forward until we hear differently," he said.

A group of Moses Lake High School students, Levi Huddleston, Meg Jackson, Bryce Perez, Micayla Strickland and Seth Yarbro were recently selected to travel to Japan for the exchange program in late July.

A group of Japanese students visits Moses Lake the third week of August.

The program's 30th anniversary will be celebrated when the Japanese group comes to Moses Lake.

Hirai has distant relatives living in Japan, as well as his wife Ginny's sister, and a niece.

"They are all doing OK," Paul said.

He spoke with one relative on the phone and communicated with other family members by e-mail.

Japan's magnitude 8.9 earthquake is the fourth most severe worldwide, according to the USGS' rankings of the world's largest earthquakes.

The list features earthquakes since 1900.

The most severe event was a 9.5 magnitude earthquake, which struck in Chile in 1960.