Charlotte Native Shares Earthquake Experience with FOX

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by Fox Charlotte

Story Created: Mar 14, 2011 at 11:01 PM EDT

Story Updated: Mar 15, 2011 at 7:14 AM EDT

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - We are inundated with the images of Japan's deteriorating nuclear plants but for people living there, like Ryan Spring, news of what is going on with the plants is only now beginning to get to them.  Remember, electricity only came back on a day ago.  "I know it should really be a huge, major concern of mine, but right now it's getting food. Getting food to my friends, making sure everyone has blankets because it's cold," Spring tells us over Skype.

Spring just finished up the second year of his master's degree at a Japanese university.  He completed his undergrad at UNC-Charlotte and went to high school at Harding University.  

The earthquake hit where he lives now, in Miyagi, but Spring is about 10 miles from the coast and was spared by the devastating tsunami.  He was teaching English at a bookstore when the earthquake hit.  "It was really bad, I really thought we were gonna die.  It was really crazy.  I wanted to run out of the building but fortunately people stopped me," says Spring.

Those people stopped him because they knew he could be killed by falling debris.  That sense of togetherness is keeping people fed and safe. Spring says no one is rioting despite rapidly depleting food supplies.  He saw two women with babies come upon the last package of diapers at a store.  Spring says, "Instead of pushy grab hands, they just decided to split it."
 
Back home, two Mecklenburg County commissioners, Republican Bill James and Democrat Dumont Clarke, have children who are also in Japan.  James' son Trey is stationed on the USS Essex.  James, who says he's been in contact with his son, who is fine, tells us the Essex was on a routine training mission when it was called to return to Japan to help the USS Ronald Regan.

Clarke's daughter Elizabeth is an intelligence officer on the Regan.  Clarke says his concern grew over the weekend as news of radioactive exposure broke, but "She called me today and she said don't worry, we're just fine, ah, it's you know, really low dose and besides, most of us are inside the ship and hadn't even been outside."

Spring says he has a fairly size-able stock pile of food.  He says he plans on bringing some to his friends who live near the coast who are very hungry.  He doesn't know when he'll be able to leave Japan.
 

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