A sense of dread filled all pals when we read the news that Japan’s “Cat Island” had been completely submerged during the tsunami. It seemed unbelievable that anyone could survive a 20-foot wall of water, moving at jet-engine speed, let alone kittehs. However, “Cat Island has survived with only minimal loss of life,” Yutaka Hama of the Hama House Inn on the island, told Live Science.
Before the tsunami, “Cat Island” or Tashirojima, as the island is officially called, was covered in cats. A reader of The Conscious Cat blog checked with a Japanese website devoted to Tashirojima and reported, ”A girl whose friend returned from the island yesterday confirmed that while a few cats died (near the gatehouse) the others are okay. There are about 50 people left on the island, and they are said to have received food (both for the humans and the cats.) It seems that when power and water will be restored, things will be fairly okay, all things considered.”
Live Science also reported that it’s difficult to keep the island supplied with food. Although relief teams have delivered human supplies by helicopter, animal relief workers aren’t sure how much food the cats are receiving. “The people on the island are very protective of the cats, so taking them off the island isn’t a choice,” Isabella Gallaon-Aoki of Animal Friends Niigata, a member of the Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue and Support coalition, told Live Science. “We will offer support to give them supplies and help with the injured animals, but a mass evacuation isn’t in the cards.” JEARS (Japanese Earthquake Animal Rescue and Support) plans to take cat food and other cat supplies to the island by boat. 
On Wednesday, 23 March, the following English translation of an article written by JEARS, appeared in the Mainchi News, Japan: ”In the morning of March 22nd, ASDF helicopters landed on a remote island, Tashirojima…out of 50 remaining people, 80% of them are older than 65 years. After about one week after the quake, emergency supplies started to arrive in the island. On 22nd, 800 kilo-litres of gasoline and kerosene, food for 100 meals were delivered along with satellite phones that will enable the residents to communicate with hospitals to ask help for acute sickness/injuries. On Tashirojima island, the younger residents of the island, already in their early 50s, carried and distributed the aid supplies…” Diligent as always, JEARS will continue to monitor the situation on Cat Island, focusing on getting cat food transported there as soon as possible.
Cat Island’s best bet for survival was tourism. Before the tsunami, the modern people of the island hoped that tourists would keep arriving and photograph their cats, feed their cats, pet their cats, etc. Two ferries a day crossed back and forth to the island from Sendai. Now that Sendai has been obliterated, Cat Island is even more isolated and further removed from tourists and their dollars. Damage done to Cat Island is said to be devastating. Tourists and volunteers are urgently required from the mainland just to get this tiny island in the position to restart it’s economy.
Japan Animal Rescue Contact Info
If you would like to donate to the animal rescue efforts in Japan, please contact one of these organizations.
Photograph credit: tofugu
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Neat pics! So glad they are OK. Nice to hear some good news from Japan. Thanx
Thanks for the update friend. It’s so good to know the kitties all survived – had to have been a miracle for sure.
It is a major worry that there will be no boats to bring people to tour cat island. This is one time when tourism is a real lifeline for a small place. I HOPE that some effotts can be made to start tours again – ensuring the long term livelehoods of the islanders and the precious anipals.
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