Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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A devastating earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale struck Japan on the afternoon of Friday, 11 March, causing widespread damage and triggering a massive tsunami.

The twin disasters ravaged the northeast of the country leaving thousands of people dead and many thousands more destitute. More than 500,000 people were evacuated from their homes and many of these have been forced to take refuge in community centres and temporary shelters.

Engineers have also been battling to save the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, 220 km from Tokyo, where the tsunami caused significant damage. There have been a number of explosions at the facility as well as radiation leaks.

With some estimates placing the cost to the Japanese economy at $200 billion (dollars), the recovery and reconstruction effort is likely to be long and difficult.

Japan's disaster response capability has been stretched to the limit by the scale of the emergency and last week they appealed to the EU for assistance. Support was specifically requested for the Japanese Red Cross, which has deployed 84 mobile medical teams and 735 staff members to the affected areas.

The Government responded immediately to this request by agreeing to provide €1 million to the Japanese Red Cross, which will provide relief for people left injured or homeless by the disaster.

The Government has also made available our emergency stockpiles in Subang, Malaysia. These are composed of emergency shelters, blankets and water and sanitation equipment and provide a basic infrastructure to those who have lost their homes. Irish Aid officials are also in ongoing contact with the EU and United Nations with a view to assessing how Ireland might further contribute to the relief operation.