>> sasaki: yeah. >> simon: ken sasaki works for city hall in a city which has disappeared.living here? >> sasaki: over 20 years. >> simon: now, when you came back here the first time after the tsunami, was there anything of yours left here? >> sasaki: nothing was left. >> simon: ken was in a meeting near the harbor when the earthquake struck. 30 minutes later, he heard an ominous noise coming from the ocean. >> sasaki: "oh, it must be a tsunami. i have to run to uphill." and then, i turn back. that was so... >> simon: it must have looked like hell. >> sasaki: yeah, it must be the hell. >> simon: nine of his relatives were killed by the tsunami-- aunts, cousins. ken-san, as he's known, had to live out of his car for three weeks. >> sasaki: it was terrible. it was so cold. there was no gas. no whiskey, no beers. ( laughter ) >> simon: ken-san is as unique a character as you'll find in japan. a music lover and guitar player, he learned english listening to the beatles. >> sasaki: ♪ get back to where you once belonged... >> simon: the ocean has taken things away from ken-san be

sasaki looked on. the following day, 50 people came to kasuko's funeral. they held a ceremony to see off her spirit. [ chanting ] >> masato laid the urn inside the family grave. finally the boys said good-bye to their grandmother. >> translator: i miss grandma, but i guess it's okay if she's going to heaven. >> translator: by holding the funeral, they were able to bid farewell to their grandmother. and prepare themselves to move on. >> reporter: after spending months waitingo see their grandmother come home alive, toshihiko and masato finally accepted her death. >>> "newsline" is the place to turn to for the latest on japan post march 11th. we have two segments offering two unique perspectives on the fallout from the earthquake and tsunami. "nuclear watch" brings you insight and information on the impact of the fukushima daiichi crisis. and "the road ahead" examines japan's efforts to recover and rebuild. don't miss "nuclear watch" and "the road ahead" on "newsline." >>> winter is fast approaching the areas hit by the march 11th disaster. volunteers are no

ktvu's john sasaki has our report. >> reporter: the proported mission of the hospital is to protect and heal but just about everyone there is saying that it's failing miserably. >> it's like a psychological rape on a daily basis. >> i was abused, big time. >> reporter: three patients and seven staff members were attacked every day many by predatory criminals. >> he was sexually assaulted by a predator. >> reporter: shawn and janet web told us about their 30-year- old son garth. >> he's in prison, they call it a hospital but it is not. it is a penal colony or a prison or a jail. >> reporter: garth web landed in napa after making threats. >> the institution fails to maintain its safety. how is he being prepared for a life in the general population? >> reporter: sean and janet web they come to the hospital every week to see their son. our requests to enter the hospital were denied. so to talk to web we had his parents call their son. the worse was when he says he was assaulted by jess massey who is accused of killing gross. >> i learned my lesson the hard way not to let your guard down and

john sasaki live at that school tonight with those angry parents and the school's reaction, john. >> reporter: frank here at buena vista elementary school students received this letter at the end of class today. two school days before this shocking event. using vague terms as an incident and derogatory note the letter does not come close to describing what happened. >> when you get a racial death threat, i think the professionals need to be called. >> the incident was that my daughter received a note at 11:45 saying [ bleep ] i'm going to get my dad's gun and kill you >> reporter: debero says it included a drawing of the girl being shot. >> the crime that is being investigated is called a terrorist threat. >> reporter: that's a felony and walnut creek police say they believe one or two of the victims classmates both fifth grade girls both made the note and left it on the desk. but they don't think anyone was in any danger. >> as far as you know, was there a gun at reach of these kids. >> i don't believe so, no. >> i'm outraged, totally outraged. >> reporter: the note was only half of

at least for now, ktvu's john sasaki joins us

. >>> ktvu's john sasaki told us some are wondering what other changes should be made at the top of oakland city government. >>> major gene quan was quick to replace chief batts but his retirement upset the city council. >> i think the frustration is justified. we have a serious crime problem and there was nobody speaking out about what to do about it. we need to get a unified vision and we need to support our police chief. that's something that was not happening. >> reporter: libby chef and pat kerneghan applaud the mayor on certain things but not so much crime fighting. >> i want to see her lead on the crime issue but i want her to listen to the law enforcement professionals. >> reporter: quan spokeswoman told me by phone that quan has done more for public safety than any other mayor. she's rehiring laid off cops, installing a new system and acquiring federal grants. in the lake shore neighborhood some residents are concerned mainly because of the batts issue. >> i think everybody is uneasy as a result. it looked like she could have handled it a little bit better. there wasn't enough comm

. >>> ktvu's john sasaki told us some are wondering what other changes should be made at the top of oakland city government. >>> major gene quan was quick to replace chief batts but his retirement upset the city council. >> i think the frustration is justified. we have a serious crime problem and there was nobody speaking out about what to do about it. we need to get a unified vision and we need to support our police chief. that's something that was not happening. >> reporter: libby chef and pat kerneghan applaud the mayor on certain things but not so much crime fighting. >> i want to see her lead on the crime issue but i want her to listen to the law enforcement professionals. >> reporter: quan spokeswoman told me by phone that quan has done more for public safety than any other mayor. she's rehiring laid off cops, installing a new system and acquiring federal grants. in the lake shore neighborhood some residents are concerned mainly because of the batts issue. >> i think everybody is uneasy as a result. it looked like she could have handled it a little bit better. there wasn't enough comm

as ktvu's john sasaki reports that is just what happened for k-9s serving with the oakland police department. >> reporter: oakland police dogs weren't look for criminals this afternoon, they were looking for donations. >> with these budget issues that we have, it's hard enough just to get hewellan vests replace. >> reporter: to get bulletproof vests for their dogs, oakland police had to ask the public for help. >> not only does it help for potential stabbings, gunshot wounds, it's gist basic all around trauma to protect their torso. >> reporter: they are not cheap, one company say dog vests for $3,000. the police and working k-9 foundation designed one of their own and sells at a reductions, but still extensive $1200. today was about outfitting the one localkt. roman named for irv roman, one of the four officers killed in march of 2009. these k-9 officers say the vests protect an important investment because police dogs are so expensive, as much as $50,000 by the time they hit the street. veterinarians say the dogs need that protection. >> because of the nature of their job, anything that pr

john sasaki has learned several students have called the so called fainting game. game that could potentially kill them. >> reporter: students were waiting for a ride home. it was the perfect time for us to learn about the pass out or fainting game. >> there's been a game going on where kids are passing out. >> reporter: on purpose. this eighth grader told me she has seen it happen. >> i wouldn't do it because it looks really stupid. you're out cold on the ground. at school, a teacher could see you. it just doesn't seem good to me. >> reporter: the so called game cuts off oxygen to the brain which could cause brain damage. officials say it has happened here on campus. >> something that can carry serious consequences so there are stories of students dying. >> reporter: lots of stories, such as last summer in chicago two kids died from the practice although in both cases they were doing it by themselves through self-strangulation. the warning has gone out to warn parents of this risky activity. >> what was your reaction? >> scared, very scared that it was happening a

john sasaki, ktvu news. >>> members of the occupy san francisco movement took out their anger against city management. they confronted the mayor and supervisors. protesters say they are angry about sunday's arrest of five people. mayor lee added the protests has cost the city more than $100,000 so far. >>> the usually quiet of alameda began the first to see a problem with the protest. they said the middle class is being left out. a former clinton cabinet member told us washington is listening. >> the mere fact of it, the mere fact it's getting as much media attention, the mere fact that more and more people are becoming aligned with it suggests to me that it's already having an effect. >> reporter: rice says whether the movement has staying power depends on organizations and discipline and its members stick with it. >>> according to numerous report, apple stores all around the world will close for several hours tomorrow so that employees can watch a web cast of a memorial service for steve jobs. that memorial is set for 10:00 tomorrow morning at apple's head quarters in cuper to the b

john sasaki, ktvu news. >>> members of the occupy san francisco movement took out their anger against city management. they confronted the mayor and supervisors. protesters say they are angry about sunday's arrest of five people. mayor lee added the protests has cost the city more than $100,000 so far. >>> the usually quiet of alameda began the first to see a problem with the protest. they said the middle class is being left out. a former clinton cabinet member told us washington is listening. >> the mere fact of it, the mere fact it's getting as much media attention, the mere fact that more and more people are becoming aligned with it suggests to me that it's already having an effect. >> reporter: rice says whether the movement has staying power depends on organizations and discipline and its members stick with it. >>> according to numerous report, apple stores all around the world will close for several hours tomorrow so that employees can watch a web cast of a memorial service for steve jobs. that memorial is set for 10:00 tomorrow morning at apple's head quarters in cuper to the b

john sasaki has learned several students have called the so called fainting game. game that could potentially kill them. >> reporter: students were waiting for a ride home. it was the perfect time for us to learn about the pass out or fainting game. >> there's been a game going on where kids are passing out. >> reporter: on purpose. this eighth grader told me she has seen it happen. >> i wouldn't do it because it looks really stupid. you're out cold on the ground. at school, a teacher could see you. it just doesn't seem good to me. >> reporter: the so called game cuts off oxygen to the brain which could cause brain damage. officials say it has happened here on campus. >> something that can carry serious consequences so there are stories of students dying. >> reporter: lots of stories, such as last summer in chicago two kids died from the practice although in both cases they were doing it by themselves through self-strangulation. the warning has gone out to warn parents of this risky activity. >> what was your reaction? >> scared, very scared that it was happening a