newsline. it is friday, march 11. i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. on this day, five years ago, a massive earth quake and tsunami hit northeastern japan. around the country, people will gather in tokyo for a memorial ceremony and silent prayer at 2:46. the largest in japan's history. huge waves nearly 16,000 people died in the disaster, after five years, more than 2,500 still

missing. the daiichi power plant spread nuclear materials over a wide area. one of the worst in history. people in northeast starting the day by remembering those they lost. the tsunami killed nearly 200 people sendai and >> it's hard when i think too much about the disaster, but we shouldn't forget the thoughts of the

people in myakao joined a drill in the early morning, preparing for a disaster for one similar that happened five years ago. they practiced evacuating to designated areas. >> translator: the tears rolled down my face as i recalled that day. during the drill, i had the same enormous fear that i had then and moved as fast as i could, because i do not want to become a victim. some dairy farmers in the city the fukushima operate this facility it, opened last september, with government funding. >> translator: i would be really happy if people considered our

farm getting on track as a symbol of reconstruction. one of the hardest hit places on the coast of the prefecture, nhk world is there today, and she joins us now. how are residents remembering this day five years on? >> reporter: it's been quiet, and rather warm morning here, catherine. we can say the weather has cooperated as people are beginning to visit places of symbolic value. we some some monks here earlier, praying for the lives that were lost. it was on march 11th, this day five years ago, that tsunami waves as high as 17 meters came gushing through the floodgate, and it inundated the entire city in front of the bay, homes,

shops, offices, schools. they were all swept away. and of the population of 24,000 people here, 1,800 people died, or are still considered missing. today, we are beginning to see signs of the ongoing recover reprocess, though, all around us. this is part of a huge conveyor belt to help to speed up the construction. the belt stressed about three kilometers long, to transport soil from a nearby mountain, thousands of tons ever soil are necessary to elevate the land that sank because of the quake and tsunami. mounds are being made to be leveled out to support a shopping and business district here. and of course, to help motivate people towards reconstruction, perhaps the very well known symbol of lone pine tree. standing behind me, the miracle

pine tree, because it was a lone survivor of some 70,000 trees that used to line the coast here. unfortunately, saltwater did go to its roots here and it wasn't able to completely survive, but residents were determined to preserve it, because it was a symbol of hope, and life for them. so they brought synthetic branches to this tree and it would have been treated, so it can remain standing. here is a look at what the coastline was like before the disaster. citizens planted the trees over hundreds of year to create a beautiful grove, famous poets, wrote about it and tourists flocked from across the country to see it. now, efforts are being made to recreate the skcenery, seedling he collected from the grove in the mountains. they'll be replanted along the

miracle pine tree starting next year. and joining me now is the head of the npo behind the project, he has brought along a little plant for us today, and i would like to ask how long it will take for the growth to come back? [ speaking in a foreign language ] >> he says that this plant is about three years old. it has a dna, carries a dna of the grove that was here t will take about 100, maybe 200 years

to grow as big of the lone pine tree and for the grove to look anything like a grove, it will take about 50 years. i would also like to know how he he is remembering this day five years on. [ speaking in a foreign language ] >> he says that it has been five years since that devastating day, but they've received so much support and cooperation from within the country, but also from around the world, and so he and the members of the npo

would really like to keep the hope going, and watch this city recover. thank you so much. and of course, we will be bringing you more reports throughout the day from here. it is past 9:00 a.m. right now, but we'll be bringing you the memorial ceremony, several hours later, around 2:46 p.m., the exact time the earthquake struck. >> thank you very much. driving communities need stable populations and businesses to serve them. but reconstruction in the disaster area has taken longer than expected. that means residents and businesses alike find it difficult to plan for the future. nhk explains. >> this shelter has been his

home for nearly five years. the two room box is big enough for he and his wife. >> translator: it's a really tight squeeze. >> he lives with his wife and three children in a two story house. >> translator: this was our old house. the tsunami destroyed it. no temporary units available for large families, so they were forced to split up. in coast al areas is in short supply. new residential sites higher up and far from the street. but all of that takes time. officials have to address relocation plans, identify landowners and gain their consent. fewer than 100 of the nearly 500 homes planned in this town have

been completed. paid a visit to a couple who just moved into their new home. >> translator: our house is so spacious, since the temporary unit was so small. no room to stretch out in cramped prefabs. >> they've been told construction won't begin for another two years. many residents of temporary units have gotten tired of waiting. and moved away. he feels anxiety about his family's future. >> translator: it's been a long time. too long. >> rebuilding businesses lost in the tsunami has also been a long process. this temporary shopping district in this town opened a year after

the disaster. it has 32 shops. he runs a restaurant here. >> translator: time really flew at first, because i was working so hard. >> government built structure soon after the disaster, businesses were initially offered free rent. next spring, a permanent shopping mall will be built on higher ground. but with the town population shrinking, some people wonder where the customers will come from. >> translator: i've been running this business for over four years. and i feel like i've had fewer customers every year. >> 30% of the town's residents have left. he has vowed about moving to the

new mall. and other shop owners are carefully considering their options. >> translator: we should talk about how to ex paneled the mark -- expand the market. >> no permanent facilities. they'll have to pay a security deposit as well as rent. >> translator: we'll be treated like ordinary tenants there. we'll have to pay rent, which would quadruple our operating costs. >> the new mall is scheduled to open in one year time. he is worried about how many of the residents will choose to remain. nhk world. this afternoon he'we'll be bringing you our special coverage and taking you to tokyo for a moment of silence at 2:46

p.m., the exact time the quake struck. on to other stories we're following, the leader of japan and finland neighbor russia dialogue. japanese prime minister abe and finnish president met on thursday in tokyo. they say moscow's involvement is indispensable for resolving the challenges facing the global community, including the conflicts in ukraine and syria. abe is considering visiting russia for a summit with vladimir putin. they also talked about strengthening relations with their countries. further cooperation in ire yeahs like security, economy and arctic development. they agreed on the systematic use of natural resources in the arctic and using the northern sea passage, the shortest sea

route linking asia and europe. the arctic region drawing global attention due to the loss of sea ice from climate change. the leaders also discussed north korea following its firing of missiles toward the sea of japan on thursday. they said they will demand restraint from pyongyang. u.s. president barack obama has taken aim at the race for the republican presidential nomination. he says the contest is a crack up, and a circus. and he says the republican establishment only has itself to blame. >> i think it is very important for them to reflect on what it is about the politics they've engaged in that allows the circus we've been seeing to transpire. and to do some introspection. >> obama blamed the hostile approach of republican leaders for the rise of donald trump.

the real estate mowigul, but continues to lead the republican nomination race. he has leveled insults at his rivals. the latest data from china shows new auto sales slower than industry expectations. tell us more. two months of the year and it shows that sales of new vehicles grew 4.4% from the same time in 2015. but they are below the 6% analysts predicting for the year. officials at the china association of automobile manufacturers say nearly 4.1 million autos rolled off deale dealers' lots in january and february. sports utility vehicles remain popular and government stimulus measures, including tax breaks, put compact and eco friendly cars in the fast lane.

but sales of sedans in low gear. chinese consumers are more interested in price than performance. the european central bank has decided to lower its main interest rates to help stimulate the euro with cuts even bigger than what investors had expected. the ecb chief played down the prospect of further easing. they decided to lower the key interest rate from the current 0.05% to zero, its first cut in a year and a half. they'll also reduce the deposit rate from minus 0.3 to minus 0.4. it will charge commercial banking to keep their money with the ecb. they'll take effect next wednesday. in addition, the ecb will expand it's it it's assets buying program to

april. >> today's comprehensive package of monetary policy decisions, we are providing substantial monetary stimulus to counteract heightened risk to the price ability objective. >> but dhragi also hinted rates won'ting getting lower. further cuts will not be necessary. investorsdisappointed. falling lower and the u.s., the average fell more than 200 points at one stage. almost all sectors trading lower this morning. the nikkei average down 1.118%, 16,653. oil related shares falling or lower crude oil prices and stronger yen. currency, euro volatile trading, single fell against major currencies after the rate cut announcement, but quickly rose

following his comments. meanwhile, dollar/yen, that's fluctuating. it's now losing some ground currently, just above the 113 yen level. let's look at market as cross the asia pacific region opened this hour and we're seeing a bit of a mixed picture with south korea kospi up just about 0.10%. australia's shares down 0.04%. the march 11th disaster devastated the fishing industry. they're finding it hard to get livelihood back on track. some oyster farmers are getting help with a new business model. >> translator: thank you for waiting. here are your oysters. this restaurant is famous for its fresh oysters served right in the shell. >> translator: it tastes like it just came from the ocean.

we're getting excellent feedback, customers like them a lot. >> the oysters are produced in the district of this city. the march 11th disaster ruined the fishing industry here. the small, aging local population has struggled to rebuild it alone. but a new special reconstruction zone has given them hope. the aim is to open up the fishing industry to private enterprise, and bring it back to life. until now, the right to farm oysters has been mostly restricted to fisheries cooperatives. but the district's designation has allowed them to grant the rights to a private company. the company was founded by a group of local oyster farmers in cooperation with the seafood wholesaler. setting up the firm allowed them to receive financial help, and

expand their sales reach. the firm is also eligible for central government subsidies. the money has been used to develop a new $1 million machine that subjects oysters to high pressure. ten minutes later. >> when the rubr band is removed, as you can see, the shell slips off easily. and the oyster just slides out like this. >> that saves restaurants the trouble of removing the shell. so the company can charge 50% more for the oysters. the business is expected to post its first profit this year. >> we feel like we need to start developing products that can fetch higher prices. we're doing this by introducing added value, and by promoting

innovation. >> creating a private company has brought changes to how fishermen work. they enjoy a stable income, because they get the same pay, regardless of how many oysters they farm individually. the company has hired ten new workers, and this stripring, a graduate from the local high school will also start work. now, the focus is on making the business sustainable by keeping the young workers around for the long-term. >> the first step is to revive the industry, then rebuild the community by a tracking people to work here. that's the ultimate goal. >> but the oyster farmers know there is still a long way to go. a new business approach may help in the effort to revive their fishing industry. i'll have more for you next hour in business. here is another check on

markets. japanese researchers say they've found new bacteria that can breakdown a widely used plastic resin commonly known as pet. researchers from the university and other

microbe. >> translator: the enzyme could be used for recycling pet bottles using less energy, a big first step. >> but the researchers say the enzyme is weak and takes time to breakdown the resin. they plan to find a way to strengthen it so recycling will require less heat energy. people across japan marking five years in the northeastern region. robert speta joins us with weather conditions here and elsewhere. >> yes, and if people are heading out and about this morning, especially into the tokyo area, you're looking at some light rainfall. maybe even some snow. afternoon hours, starting to warm up. also it, does look like the

precipitation tapering off. but for the most part, most of central and northern japan, partly cloudy to cloudy skies, gloomy conditions out there, some passing snow flurries in the higher elevations, but it does look like the eastern seaboards out here for a lot of the memorial services taking place, it does look like precipitation free it. just a high of 3, sendai, up to 8. temperatures, rather chilli. if you are heading out and about this morning into the afternoon, you do want to have a heavy jacket with you, things will remain rather cold. it does look like heading into next week, though, we're going to be looking at a warming trend across most of japan, even toward the korean peninsula as well, if you do want the spring-like weather. down towards the south, precipitation, wet spot into

taiwan, 300 millimeters have been reported in the past several days. northeasterly winds. moving towards the americas, i want to mention the storm system, which we've been monitoring, really all week for that matter, start over in california, heavy snowfall into western areas of mexico, and then pulling off here towards the east, pumping in those southerly winds across parts of eastern texas, louisiana, report here, 531 millimeters of total rainfall since the storm system ga began, and it has been forcing thousands of residents to evacuate. one way they were getting out, major interstate in the region have also been shut down, state of emergencies is in effect for several parishes across areas of the one casualty reported from a similar instance like this. somebody was trying to drive through a flooded highway, and they end up getting swept away

and drowning. if you ever see a flooded road, don't drive through it. the current could still be strong. as far as the forecast, moisture coming in from the south, but also pumping in the warm air towards the east. record breaking highs on thursday, up and down the eastern seaboard, temperatures, a little bit cooler, but still above average heading into friday. all right, here is the extended

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

stacey thunder: on this edition of "native report," we view the celebrated artwork of sculptor cyrus dallin, we interview stephen pevar, author of "the rights of indians and tribes--" the congress and the courts have recognized that indian tribes have inherent powers. stacey thunder: --and we continue to celebrate our 10th season by revisiting the great oak of the pechanga nation. we also learn something new about indian country, and hear from our elders on this "native report." announcer: production of "native report" is made possible by grants from the shakopee mdewakanton sioux community and the blandin foundation. [music playing]