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| Alaskan finds Japanese tsunami survivor … a football | Alaskan finds Japanese tsunami survivor … a football |
| (4 months later) | |
| A teenager who lost his home in Japan's tsunami last year now knows that one prized possession survived: a football that made it all the way to Alaska. | A teenager who lost his home in Japan's tsunami last year now knows that one prized possession survived: a football that made it all the way to Alaska. |
| Officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) say the ball is one of the first pieces of debris from the tsunami to wash up on the other side of the Pacific. | Officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) say the ball is one of the first pieces of debris from the tsunami to wash up on the other side of the Pacific. |
| A man found the ball while beachcombing on an Alaskan island. His wife, who is Japanese, talked with its owner, 16-year-old Misaki Murakami, by phone at the weekend. They plan to send the ball back to him soon. | A man found the ball while beachcombing on an Alaskan island. His wife, who is Japanese, talked with its owner, 16-year-old Misaki Murakami, by phone at the weekend. They plan to send the ball back to him soon. |
| Murakami said: "It was a big surprise. I've never imagined that my ball has reached Alaska." He told public broadcaster NHK. "I've lost everything in the tsunami. So I'm delighted." | Murakami said: "It was a big surprise. I've never imagined that my ball has reached Alaska." He told public broadcaster NHK. "I've lost everything in the tsunami. So I'm delighted." |
| All the furniture and sentimental items in his home in Rikuzentakata, more than 3,000 miles (5,000km) from Alaska, were washed away in the 11 March tsunami which devastated a long stretch of Japan's north-eastern coast and killed about 19,000 people. | All the furniture and sentimental items in his home in Rikuzentakata, more than 3,000 miles (5,000km) from Alaska, were washed away in the 11 March tsunami which devastated a long stretch of Japan's north-eastern coast and killed about 19,000 people. |
| The ball, which had messages of encouragement written on it, was given to Murakami in 2005 as a goodbye gift when he transferred to another school. | The ball, which had messages of encouragement written on it, was given to Murakami in 2005 as a goodbye gift when he transferred to another school. |
| Debris from the tsunami initially formed a thick mass in the ocean off Japan's coast but has since spread across the Pacific. In February, the NOAA said currents would carry much of the debris to the coasts of Alaska, Canada, Washington and Oregon between March 2013 and 2014, though they noted that some of it could arrive this year. | Debris from the tsunami initially formed a thick mass in the ocean off Japan's coast but has since spread across the Pacific. In February, the NOAA said currents would carry much of the debris to the coasts of Alaska, Canada, Washington and Oregon between March 2013 and 2014, though they noted that some of it could arrive this year. |
| Earlier this month, a "ghost" fishing boat was found drifting in the Gulf of Alaska. | Earlier this month, a "ghost" fishing boat was found drifting in the Gulf of Alaska. |
| David Baxter, a radar technician from Kasilof, Alaska, found Murakami's ball while beachcombing in March on Middleton Island, 70 miles south of the Alaskan mainland. | David Baxter, a radar technician from Kasilof, Alaska, found Murakami's ball while beachcombing in March on Middleton Island, 70 miles south of the Alaskan mainland. |
| "When I first saw the soccer ball I was excited to see it and I thought it was possible it came from the tsunami zone," Baxter told the Associated Press by email. He also found a volleyball that appears to be from Japan, but its owner has not been found. | "When I first saw the soccer ball I was excited to see it and I thought it was possible it came from the tsunami zone," Baxter told the Associated Press by email. He also found a volleyball that appears to be from Japan, but its owner has not been found. |
| Baxter's wife, Yumi, reached Murakami with help from a Japanese reporter. Murakami expressed his gratitude to the couple for "for wanting to take the time to even try to find him", David Baxter said. | Baxter's wife, Yumi, reached Murakami with help from a Japanese reporter. Murakami expressed his gratitude to the couple for "for wanting to take the time to even try to find him", David Baxter said. |
| The couple planned to visit Japan in May but were reluctant to deliver the ball to Murakami themselves because they didn't want to create a commotion, Baxter said. | The couple planned to visit Japan in May but were reluctant to deliver the ball to Murakami themselves because they didn't want to create a commotion, Baxter said. |
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