Great East Japan Earthquake | 80th Anniversary

A Japanese man and boy, seen from behind, look out over a memorial park with a mountain scene in the background.

Tsunami memorial serves as a tribute to those lost and a call to never forget

For those traveling through Japan’s Iwate prefecture, a visit to Takata Matsubara Memorial Park for Tsunami Disaster and the Iwate Tsunami Memorial Museum serves as more than a history lesson. It is an encounter with resilience, a tribute to those lost and a call to never forget.

A sign welcoming guests to Okumatsushima near Nobiru, Japan, is all that is left of the area Feb. 10, 2016.

Former community destroyed by 2011 tsunami now just a stop on way to somewhere else

A reconstruction worker on his lunch break walks by the framed pictures of U.S. soldiers that he’s passed by several times before — but this time, he really looks.

The remains of a sign reading ''Nuclear power: Energy for a bright future'' stands over the barricaded road along National Route 6 in the ghost town Futaba, Japan, less than 10 miles from the severely damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant.

Fukushima radiation poses little risk, but lack of trust lingers

The worst health effects of the 2011 Fukushima Dai-chi nuclear power plant meltdown aren’t coming from radiation — at least, not yet.

Marines from Okinawa and Camp Fuji along with soldiers from Camp Zama and Japan Self-Defense Force troops, assisted in the clean up of the Minato Elementary School in Ishinomaki, Japan, April 2, 2011.

Suburban sprawl, downtown struggles challenge Tohoku’s tsunami recovery

Any American from a city with a forgotten Main Street would recognize what is happening in Ishinomaki.

The wall at the Terauchi Daini temporary housing complex community room in Minamisoma, Japan, is covered with encouraging letters and thank you notes, Feb. 11, 2016.

Spurred by help from military families, tsunami victims aid others in need

Take papers dyed in springtime colors, fold them into dozens of flower shapes and sew them into a single ball.

Yokosuka makes changes after learning lesson from last year's quake

When the shaking began on the ninth floor of Sakura Tower at 2:46 p.m. on March 11, 2011, Melissa Lindfors wasn’t sure if it was the sort of thing her family would just have to get used to at their new duty station in Japan.

Col. Craig Timberlake, commander of 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, flew to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni along with other senior Marine Corps and Navy leadership Saturday to get a look at what relief and support Marines and Navy personnel from Okinawa could offer in the coming days and weeks.

U.S. military aid arrives in Japan amid concerns for nuclear plants

U.S. military manpower and equipment started arriving in Japan on Saturday to assist in rescue and humanitarian operations, as the death toll from Friday’s 8.9-magnitude earthquake and powerful tsunami mounted along with concerns about the safety of nuclear power facilities in northern Japan.