Google Launches Japan Earthquake Person Finder To Help Find Missing People
The Huffington Post Catharine Smith First Posted: 03/11/11 09:52 AM Updated: 03/11/11 09:52 AM
Read More: Google Person Finder, Google Person Finder Japan, Japan Earthquake, Japan Tsunami,Technology News
In the aftermath of the 8.9-magnitude earthquakethat struck Japan Friday, Google has launched a Japanese-language Person Finder tool to help victims and families locate one another.
The Person Finder lets people enter an inquiry about a missing person or provide information for interested parties. A similar tool was launched after a large quake struck Chile in February 2010.
By 9 a.m. EST on Friday, the AP had reported that 60 are dead and 56 are missing in Japan as a result of the massive quake and the tsunami that followed. At that time, Google's Person Finder was tracking an estimated 5,500 records.
Google announced the Person Finder tool on Twitter. "Google Person Finder available after earthquake in Japan to help you get information about loved ones," read a tweet from the official Google account.
Visit the Person Finder Tool: 2011 Japan Earthquake page to view the Google service. For the latest updates about Japan, visit our live blog. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/11/japan-earthquake-google-person-finder-_n_834445.html
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Japan quake ranks as 5th largest since 1900
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By ALICIA CHANG
The Associated PressFriday, March 11, 2011; 10:26 AM
LOS ANGELES -- Scientists say the massive earthquake that struck off the coast of Japan ranks as the fifth largest jolt in the world since 1900.
The magnitude-8.9 "megathrust" quake is similar to what happened during the 2004 Sumatra quake and the one last year in Chile. In all these cases, one tectonic plate is shoved beneath another.
Such earthquakes are responsible for the most powerful shifts in the Earth's crust.
More than 80 aftershocks greater than magnitude-5 have been felt since the Japanese quake - a number that scientists say is normal for a quake this size.
...read more here http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/03/11/AR2011031102916.html
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Such earthquakes are responsible for the most powerful shifts in the Earth's crust.
More than 80 aftershocks greater than magnitude-5 have been felt since the Japanese quake - a number that scientists say is normal for a quake this size.
...read more here http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/03/11/AR2011031102916.html
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Japan earthquake live blog: Japan dam breaks, scores of homes lost
A tsunami smashes vehicles and houses at Kesennuma city in Miyagi prefecture, northern Japan.
An 8.9-magnitude earthquake hit northern Japan today, triggering tsunamis that sent a wave filled with boats and houses toward land. Hawaii and the U.S. West Coast are under a tsunami warning. Are you in an affected area? Send an iReport. Read the full report on how the quake hit Japan and generated a Pacific-wide tsunami.
...[10:42 a.m. ET, 12:42 a.m. Tokyo] A dam has broken in Fukushima prefecture, washing away scores of homes in the area, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported early Saturday.
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Whirlpool created by tsunami....
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Note: Civil defence officials in the Philippines lift their #tsunami alert after its Pacific seaboard was only hit by small waves, from AFP
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Note: Reuters : FLASH: Death toll from Japan quake, tsunami rises above 300, several hundred missing: report
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Note: BBCWorld : Nuclear plant in northeast #Japan that suffered cooling system failure as result of #quake expected to return to normal soon, from AFP
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Note: cnnbrk : #Tsunami waves of nearly 7 feet reported at harbor in Maui, Hawaii.http://on.cnn.com/hQmkLS
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Note: BreakingNews : Passenger train with unknown number of people aboard missing in coastal area of Japan - Kyodo via BBC http://bbc.in/eP8sto
