"newsline." it's thursday, august 13th. i'm kacatherine kobayashi in tokyo. rescue workers are looking for workers in a ware house that exploded. state-run media say 14 people are dead. the news agency reports the first of a series of blasts happened wednesday night right-hand around 11:30. shock waves were felt several kilometers away.

china central's television reports that more than 400 people are injured. emergency services are being overwhelmed as the injured flood hospitals. firefighters are working to try to put out the blames. two of them are unaccounted for. members ever the islamic state group's egyptian affiliate claimed they have killed a foreign hostage, they posted a photo purportedly of a croatian man. the group is in the sinai peninsula. the photo appears to have been taken from a desert. a caption says the man was killed because of his country's participation in the war against the islamic state group. the prime minister has responded, saying authorities cannot confirm the information is legitimate, but he says they are investigating. islamic state militants have posted videos of the killing of a number of foreign hostages in syria. if confirmed, this would be the

first such incident in egypt. a u.s. military helicopter has crashed during a training exercise off japan's southern prefecture of okinawa. seven people were injured, including two japanese self-defense personnel onboard the chopper. defense ministry sources say the helicopter may have come into contact with a crane on the deck of the vessel. the sources say it was flying below altitude. in 2004, a u.s. military helicopter crashed at okinawa international university adjacent to futen ma air station. the accident highlighted the dangers of an american military facility located in a residential area. >> translator: it crashed again. i thought they may crash. >> translator: accidents like this make me more anxious.

>> the accident occurred just before okinawa governor onega met with chief cabinet member yoshihide suga to discuss the planned relocation of the u.s. base. >> translator: a u.s. military helicopter crashed into the waters. a u.s. military osprey aircraft crashed in hawaii when i was there on my way to washington, d.c. such accidents are unsettling to people living near bases. >> suga said the government is urging the u.s. military to investigate the cause and to take measures to prevent a similar recurrence. later in the talks, suga tried to persuade the governor to agree on relocating the futen ma base to a less populated area within okinawa prefecture. he stressed the plan is based on an agreement with the u.s. government. he reit grated his position that

the facility should be moved out of the prefecture. he referred to the special situation okinawa has endured since the end of world war ii. the two agreed to continue talks. >> translator: i felt the governor and i were so far apart at today's meeting, but it is a start. i will do all i can to narrow the differences in further talks with officials in okinawa. >> translator: i felt the cabinet didn't have the chance to listen to okinawa's voice. >> officials in tokyo have suspended the preparatory work on the replacement facility until september 9th, they plan to hold intensive discussions with officials in okinawa during the pause. the prefecture hosts more than 70% of u.s. military facilities in japan. five former japanese prime

ministers have expressed opposition to a set of national security bills being debated in the upper house of the diet. the legislation would allow japan to exercise the right to collective self-defense. a group opposed to the legislation asked 12 former prime ministers to give their recommendations on the bills. five of them responded. they were members of parties other than the main governing liberal democratic party while serving as prime minister. it was said stipulations of the bills are ambiguous. he said they would allow the government to exercise the right to collective self-defense in any way. mohata wrote that it laid the foundation for japan's peace and prosperity. they said it is unforgivable the abe administration is pushing the bill through the diet without regard for popular opinion. and another said japan should not exercise its right to

collective self-defense unless it revises the constitution. he wants japan to special nation thann eng war. and okan said thabe adnistration itryi to push through legislation that is clearly unconstitu almost 70 years have passed since the end of world war ii. during hostilities, more than 100,000 japanese americans were confined to camps in the u.s. after the war, some of them were sent to japan where they faced discrimination yet again. >> reporter: marie has been teaching english in japan in more than five decades. >> it makes me feel good if i can be of some help to people. it makes me happy. >> reporter: she was born and raised in california, but japan

has been her home for 70 years. her grandfather settled in california in the 1920s and ran a vineyard. marie went to school, helped out with the family business, and took care of her younger siblings. but those days were numbered once japan attacked pearl harbor. >> i couldn't believe it. i didn't know japan. [ laughter ] so, as soon as i got home, i looked at the map, and i said, this is japan. it's such a small country. how can a small country like that attack a big country like america, you know? but i was really shocked. >> reporter: the u.s. government relocated 120,000 japanese

americans to interment camps. marie was 11 when she and her family were sent away. in the camp, the adults were asked whether they are willing to serve in the u.s. military and abandon allegiance to the emperor of japan? anyone who answered no to both questions was called a no-no and was separated from those who said yes. marie remembers her parents discussing what to do. they were worried about their older daughters in hiroshima. they had accompanied their grandfather there before the war, but the family lost contact. in the end, they chose no. the family was sent to a segregation camp established for the no-nos. it was surrounded by barbed wire

and armed guards. >> because japan attacked pearl harbor, why should we, an american citizen, be responsible for something like that? and so i was really shocked to be treated like that. >> reporter: after the war, her father was forcibly sent to japan, and the rest of the family followed. in japan, marie again faced discrimination for being out of step. anti-american sentiment ran high. >> when i'm walking, i don't know, maybe it's because of the way i walk, they used to throw rocks at me and say yankee, from behind. it's just that, like in america, i'm japanese, but in japan, i'm not really japanese, and, who am

i? that's how i felt? >> reporter: marie persevered and worked hard to support her parents and create a new life for herself. she started teaching english in the 1960s and became the principal of hiroshima's first english language kindergarten. recently she has been working with volunteers, sharing with overseas visitors, poetry and the memoirs of a-bomb survivors. she wants to make sure her students can express themselves clearly, transcending language barriers. >> it's the regular people who are the ones who suffer from any kind of war. i hope that the future generation, like i mentioned, they should be able to learn how to communicate with people of

other countries, so that there's no war. >> reporter: in her 84 years, she has experienced the consequences of war and discrimination. she's made it her mission to spare other people from having to learn those same difficult lessons in the way she did. nhk world, hiroshima. managers at japanese factories are spending less on upgrades. machinery orders in june fell nearly 8% from the month before. the cabinet office says companies placed orders worth about $6.7 billion. that's down 7.9% in yen terms from may, and the first decline in four months. the numbers don't include the ship building and power sectors,

which tend to see large fluctuations. a british publishing giant has agreed to sell a 50% stake in the economist group. pearson announced last month it would sell the financial times to japan's nikkei. pearson officials say the stake in the economist will be sold to an italian investment firm and other investors for $730 million. the economist was founded in 1843. it's well respected for analyses on economics and global politics. the magazine has a paid circulation of 1.6 million. analysts say pearson plans to put the funds from the two sales into its education business. the chinese yuan has hit a three-year low, this comes after the country's central bank chief slashed the currency's rate for trading against the dollar for the second straight day. policymakers at the people's bank of china managed the currency through what's known as a midpoint reference rate. they set the rate at 6.3306 yuan per dollar on wednesday, down

more than 1.6% from the previous day. the bank also lowered the rate on tuesday devaluing the currency by more than 1.8%. the yuan closed at 6.3870, the lowest level since july 2012. the benchmark index on the shanghai stock market fell about 1%. concerns over the economy caused stock prices to tumble. in new york, the dow jones lost more than 270 points during traded. market indices fell 3.4% in paris, over 3.2% in frankfurt, and 1.4% in london. market sources say speculation is growing that china may lower the rate further and prompt other countries to weaken their currencies. a samurai movie theme park

in keetio once drew large crowds but numbers tapered off as fewer of those films were produced. now park managers are bringing back the visitors after making their attractions more modern and interactive. ♪ ♪ >> reporter: this film set theme park in kyoto opened in 1975. the theme park boasts an outdoor set that looks like a period street. a major film company uses the set to film samurai dramas. people once flocked here to watch the dramas being filmed. at its peak, the park attracted more than two million visitors a year. but fewer samurai dramas are made now, and the number of visitors has plummeted. attendance bottomed out at under

700,000. there was even talk of closing the park down. ♪ but the operator decided to try something new, to make the park a place for experiencing, not just observing. the actors who put on a sword fight show, now also teach visitors how to handle a sword, move like a real sword fighter. [ laughter ] >> this man is not an actor. but these tourists are transformed by makeup and costume. the park gives people the chance to feel like a film star. >> translator: i feel like a star. what should i do if i'm asked

for my autograph? >> reporter: the park is also throwing the spotlight on ninja. the idea is to attract foreigners who are fans of the stealthy spies. [ laughter [ laughter ] >> ninja, i watch the ninja show, it's beautiful. i really want to watch it again if i can. >> reporter: park officials made another change to appeal to visitors. they began to allow picture-taking in areas where photography was once forbidden. [ speaking foreign language ]

>> reporter: visitors are encouraged to take lots of photos and post them on the internet. the goal is to spread the word about the park. the changes are working. park attendance is actually starting to go up. >> translator: things are definitely different from the way they were ten years ago. we have to recognize the changes and keep ahead of the curve. >> reporter: the park found success by recognizing the need to change and introducing bold reforms. it's a model that other struggling tourist attractions might be wise to follow. over the past few years, the philippines has seen steady economic growth. but the gap between rich and poor remains wide. millions of children are out of

school. one man is working to bring education to them, and as minori takao reports, he's getting help from japan to do it. >> reporter: in the suburbs of manila, street children are enjoying these booklets. they're japanese manga, written in english. they're designed to teach moral values, using stories taken from the bible. over 90% of filipinos are christian. so most people are familiar with the stories, whether or not they can read. this is the man distributing them, at what he calls his push-cart classrooms. the manga draws the children in, and keeps them coming to classes, where he teaches them reading and writing. >> they love, we love, i love

japanese animation. so we grew up watching them on tv. the manga material kind of easily catch the children's attention because they know the characters. and that's actually a good motivation for -- so that we can start tell them the story behind -- behind the graphics. >> reporter: efren grew up in an impoverished part of metropolitan manila. he's seen his friends lured to crime, drugs, and prostitution. efren said he might have joined a gang himself if he hadn't gone to school. but an ngo helped him get an education, and he wants to do the same for his students. >> i think education is a powerful tool to make 1% productive, to have a purpose in life. >> reporter: typhoon heyan hit

the phil eens in 2013, and staff from a japanese publisher, flew over to help. they took with them, some of their manga to hand out. now efren's using those booklets, with support from the publisher and the philippines department of education. efren says he's hoping to reach 8,000 children in the first year. >> whenever we go to one community, seeing the children coming towards us with smile, you see their eyes are sparkling, you see how they are so hungry to learn. sometimes it's little push these children need, protection, support, and most importantly hope. >> reporter: efren says he believes every child has potential and hidden talent. but you need a key to unlock that talent. he's hopeful that manga will be one of those keys and help

children reach their potential. minori takao, nhk world. wednesday marked the 30th anniversary of japan's worst ever air disaster. in the accident, a jet liner crashed into a mountain near tokyo, claiming the lives of 520 people. friends and relatives of the victims have journeyed to the crash site to pray and attend a memorial ceremony. people of all ages from children to the elderly climbed up northwest of tokyo. they laid flowers and offered prayers for their loved ones at a memorial marking the crash site. [ bell tolls ] >> translator: i've been coming here for 30 years to see my brother. and i've come this year too.

>> translator: my son was born the year i lost my younger brother in the crash. my son got married, so he came here to introduce his wife to my brother. >> a japan airlines boeing jumbo jet went into the mountain on august 12, 1985. it was heading for osaka from tokyo. only four people survived the crash. investigators concluded that the rear pressure bulkhead came apart during the flight, making the plane uncontrollable. about 360 people gathered at the foot of the mountain for a memorial ceremony. participants observed a minute of silence at 6:56 p.m., the time of the crash. they laid flowers at an altar, and lit 520 candles. one for each victim. they prayed that a similar disaster would never happen

again. many people in japan are taking a break this week for the mid summer holidays known as o-bonn. they're heading to their hometowns or vacation spots and the flow of travelers has reached its peak. passengers packed onto bullet trains throughout the day. one leaving north of the capital was 110% full. another in western japan was filled to 160% capacity. air travel was also congested. almost all domestic flights leaving tokyo and osaka were fully booked. many motorists were stuck in traffic, an expressway was backed up more than 40 kilometers. the congestion began to ease, but will likely pick up again. it's time now for a check of the weather. people in parts of morocco are dealing with stormy weather conditions and flooding. robert speta joins us with the

latest. >> what we are seeing out here is actually an area of low pressure. it was centered back towards the north, just off the coast of portugal. but it's been surging in this moisture from the south out of the tropics. and when that hits some of the mountains in central morocco, it really dropped a torrential amount of rainfall. let's go to video we have, just showing you what it looks like on the ground here. you can see that river flowing through. and one of the big problems, these rivers started to build up, caused mudslides. three women, two young daughters were missing on monday after torrential rains left one of these towns here flooded. and five missing -- the five missing were sheltering in one of the three houses that ended up being washed away in floods. streets were cut offs, bridges collapsed. and some residents have lost everything. you can see the powerful images, showing you what happened here with this storm system. on the satellite picture, it really does explain the story here with these very bright

white cloud tops flaring up. that's what's been dropping torrential rainfall. as far as forecasts, it should taper off thursday into friday. the jet stream running through here, parts of france and spain, seeing some short-term heavy rain kick up, 50 to 70 millimeters total accumulation could occur, even in parts of the brish isle as well as it moves through. back east, we have a low in italy. and the heat is dominating the eastern portions of europe. look at vienna, 36, and rome all the way up to 39 on your thursday. stay cool out there. let's talk about what's going on here in hawaii as well. we with have hilda. it is struggling. the storm system continuing to weaken. it's moving in an area not favorable for tropical development. good news for hawaii. you still have watches, still see passing showers as it moves towards the south, but i think the biggest thing here is the surf.

and some dangerous rip currents, speeshl near the southern coast. stay out of the water if you are visiting this area. that's for me now. i'll leave you now with your extended forecast. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ especially near the southern

♪ ♪ that wraps up this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for staying with us.

♪

anchor: hello and welcome to "in good shape." believe it or not, scientists of germany have recently found evidence that psychotherapy can alter your genes. we have more about that on today's show. here is what else is coming up. restless legs. we will be talking about this neurological disorder with our experts in the studio. cool breezes, white air-conditioning can be bad for your health. in painful deposits, what causes