Politic

After earning a diploma from Houghton College last spring, Shannon De Boer moved to Japan and quickly went to work teaching English to high school students. She was enjoying her time there, said her uncle, Arthur De Boer, and she often traveled on weekends.

Shannon was in Toyohashi during Friday's massive 8.9 magnitude earthquake. The 24-year-old immediately e-mailed her family to say she was OK.

"She said there was a very strong tremor. It felt like she was on a skateboard on a very wild ride," Arthur De Boer, of Hopedale, said yesterday. "That area did not have the heavy damage, but it's very scary, and they're feeling significant aftershocks along the way."

Shannon's Toyohashi apartment is about 300 miles from the earthquake's epicenter, in Sendai. No floods or fires struck there, Arthur De Boer said, but people in Toyohashi are having trouble getting information about what's happening in the rest of the country.

Local residents said they were "devastated" and "shocked" by news of the earthquake and tsunami, which destroyed part of Japan's coast and likely killed thousands of people by triggering fires and carrying away boats, cars and homes.

"I think it's shocking," said Nancy Best, of Hopkinton. "You just feel so bad for people, and everything's out of control."

Best supports the international community sending assistance to Japan, saying that "people have to help each other out."

Lending a hand was Holliston resident Salina Bennett's first thought after hearing about the earthquake. Bennett previously worked for the grassroots organization Music for Relief, which was founded in 2005 by rock band Linkin Park and is now collecting donations for earthquake victims.

"My immediate reaction was to call them and see if I can go over there and help," Bennett said.

Franklin resident Bob Booker expressed concern, particularly, over the nuclear power plant that exploded yesterday after being damaged from the earthquake and tsunami.

"It brings into question how safe nuclear reactors can be," he said. "Even though they built it to withstand an earthquake, they did not build it to withstand one that strong."

The earthquake is the biggest ever recorded in Japan, and the fifth-largest in the world since 1900. It shook cities and villages along a 1,300-mile stretch and caused buildings to sway in Tokyo, hundreds of miles from Sendai.

Shannon De Boer plans to remain in Japan, Arthur De Boer said. Her parents spoke with her via Skype on Friday and have sent updates to Arthur and his wife, Laurel.

"We were quite nervous for her and anxious to hear she was fine and, of course, concerned for all the people in Japan," Laurel said yesterday. "They're in our prayers."

Julie Balise can be reached at 508-634-7546 or jbalise@wickedlocal.com.

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