Man Swept 9 Miles Out to Sea by Tsunami Is Rescued

Published November 17, 2014

MINAMISOMA, Japan -- A Japanese man who was swept 9 miles out to sea by Japan's deadly tsunami was plucked to safety Sunday after being spotted clinging to a piece of wreckage, officials said.

A Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer rescued 60-year-old Hiromitsu Shinkawa after discovering him floating on a piece of roof in waters off Fukushima Prefecture, two days after the disaster struck.

The man, from the city of Minamisoma, which was virtually obliterated, was swept out along with his house after the massive tsunami tore into Japan's northeast, following an 8.9-magnitude earthquake Friday.

He was conscious and in "good condition" after his rescue, which took place around 12:40pm local time, ministry officials said, adding that he was transported to the hospital by helicopter.

"I ran away after learning that the tsunami was coming," Shinkawa told rescuers, according to Jiji Press. "But I turned back to pick up something at home, when I was washed away. I was rescued while I was hanging to the roof from my house."

"Several helicopters and ships passed by, but none of them noticed me," he was quoted by another defense agency spokesman, who refused to be identified by name, as saying.

Japanese troops used a small boat to pluck him from the ocean.

Military officials said Shinkawa was lucky that mild weather and relatively calm seas enabled him to stay afloat for nearly two days, the Kyodo news agency reported.

"I thought today was the last day of my life," it quoted him as saying.

The government said that at least 1,000 people were believed to have lost their lives in the disaster, and police estimated that more than 215,000 people were huddled in emergency shelters.

However, the police chief of badly-hit Miyagi Prefecture, which lies north of Fukushima, said that the death toll was certain to exceed 10,000 in his district alone.

The Associated Press and NewsCore contributed to this report.

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