NW aid groups struggle with risky work in Japan

The escalating nuclear crisis in Japan is making it harder to get help to survivors of the tsunami and earthquake, according to some Northwest aid organizations.

"Because of the reactor problems, we don't have access to the region as we normally would," said Joe DiCarlo, director of international programs for Portland-based Medical Teams International. Relief agencies are not reaching some of the hardest-hit people because of travel constraints and radiation fears.

With the U.S. Navy moving ships to avoid possible radiation exposure and conflicting reports coming from the Japanese government, jittery aid groups are tracking developments closely.

A group from Federal Way-based World Vision visited a shelter for "radiation refugees" in Fukushima on Wednesday, close to the damaged nuclear plants. They were careful to stay outside the exclusion zone and wore protective masks and gloves, said communications officer Casey Calamusa. "We're used to working in conflict zones and disaster areas. This is a new kind of situation for us."

Many U.S. organizations haven't sent large numbers of people because of language barriers and the fact that the Japanese government is well-equipped to respond to disasters, said Joel Charny, vice president of InterAction, an umbrella group for nonprofits. Nuclear fears are adding another level of hesitation.

"You have to ask yourself in this situation: Does my organization really need to have staff in the vicinity?" he said. "You're applying a higher threshold because of the potential of a nuclear emergency."

International Medical Corps, based in California, shifted its small contingent, partly to reduce the risk of radiation exposure, said communications director Margaret Aguirre. "We have repositioned people, but we have not pulled back."

Members of the group flew to Sendai on Wednesday — closer to the reactors — to help coordinate delivery of medical supplies.

Government rules require all doctors be licensed in Japan, which means outside medical groups can't offer the type of hands-on care they usually provide in disasters.

Unable to deploy medical teams, DiCarlo's group is instead raising money for Japanese-run relief efforts. International Medical Corps is seeking waivers that would allow their doctors to care for the injured, Aguirre said.

Groups that are beginning to provide assistance on the ground report overwhelming devastation.

Peace Winds Japan, which has a Seattle affiliate, chartered a helicopter to survey the damage at one coastal city but couldn't find any place to land amid the debris.

"They just turned around," said Mari Poorman, Seattle-based project officer for Peace Winds America. The Japanese teams planned to deliver tents, food and kerosene to another city Thursday, with shipments routed up Japan's West Coast to avoid the reactor zone.

Gas is rationed, and prices are approaching $8 a gallon in places. A single blanket sells for $30. In some evacuation centers, people are sleeping on cardboard and eating one meal a day.

Risks weighed

Calamusa was reached by phone in a World Vision convoy en route to the city of Tome, north of Sendai. The cargo includes blankets, diapers and hygiene supplies for 6,000 people. Calamusa admitted to a bit of unease. "It's what we do — go into these places and help people," he said. "But at the same time you cannot put undue risk on your own staff."

Experience in the 1995 Kobe earthquake that devastated Seattle's sister city proved useful to some Northwesterners assisting in relief efforts. While many were scrambling to leave Japan, Kenichi Uchikura, founder of Pacific Software Publishing in Bellevue, flew to Tokyo on Monday to try to help his customers. Company CEO Mayumi Nakamura focused on raising money for Red Cross.

Uchikura grew up in Kobe and later saw his parents' home destroyed in that earthquake.

The emotional trauma of last Friday's quake makes it even more important for people here to show support, Nakamura added.

"They need to hear from us," she said. "The fact that so many people are participating in the fundraising drive really sends a strong message out."

Unlike in Kobe, where officials initially rejected outside efforts to help, this time rescue crews appeared to be getting in quickly, Nakamura said. Nevertheless, "This is a long, long recovery they have ahead of them."

Seattle's Japanese American and Japan-related cultural, educational and civic organizations put together a fundraising website — SeattleJapanRelief — within days of the quake.

The organizations are using their networks to raise money for the American Red Cross, Peace Winds and the YMCA, said Benjamin Erickson, Director of Cultural and Educational Programs at the Hyogo Business and Cultural Center in Seattle.

Soccer fans donate

Volunteers collected more than $20,000 in donations for the Red Cross on Tuesday evening at the Seattle Sounders FC game, where Gov. Chris Gregoire held out a donation can at the entrance to Qwest Field. On Thursday, volunteers will set up donation stations at the Uwajimaya stores in Seattle and Renton.

Local groups gained a wealth of knowledge of best practices after the Kobe earthquake, Erickson said.

People might be tempted to send food and blankets, but "we know there is no infrastructure for anything like that right now," he said.

Aid groups are dealing with search-and-rescue operations and providing basic supplies. "Money is what's going to keep those things going," Erickson said.

Sandi Doughton: 206-464-2491 or sdoughton@seattletimes.com

Kristi Heim: 206-464-2718 or kheim@seattletimes.com