On March 11, 2011, at 2:46 pm, a 9.1 magnitude earthquake takes place 231 miles northeast of Toyko. Its depth is 15.2 miles and it triggers a tsunami with 30-foot tall waves. The wave strikes shore and damage several nuclear reactors. 20,000 die and another 2,500 remain missing. Damage is estimated at 25 trillion Yen (300 billion USD). An estimated 5 million tons of debris was swept offshore–most sank, but roughly 1.5 million tons is floating in the Pacific Ocean. It was the largest earthquake to ever hit Japan. Moshe Cohen (CWB-USA’s founder) joined Guy Totaro and his efforts as the Tyler Foundation’s Shine On! Smile Ambassador to bring smiles and laughter to the children affected by the tsunami/earthquake disaster.
