The 3-year anniversary of Japan's deadly tsunami in one heartbreaking photo

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The 3-year anniversary of Japan's deadly tsunami in one heartbreaking photo

At 2:46 p.m. on March 11, 2011, a 9.0-magnitude earthquake unleashed a 10-meter-high tsunami on northeastern Japan. That double disaster swept away entire towns and villages, killing nearly 16,000 people and leaving hundreds of thousands homeless.

In the three years since, Japan has struggled to rebuild the worst hit towns and to clean up radiation from the meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. But for those who survived the horror or lost loved ones in the massive wave, the struggle is beyond bricks and mortar. This heartbreaking photo says it all. --Lauren Hansen

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Lauren Hansen
Lauren Hansen

Lauren Hansen produces The Week’s podcasts and videos and edits the photo blog, Captured. She also manages the production of the magazine's iPad app. A graduate of Kenyon College and Northwestern University, she previously worked at the BBC and Frontline. She knows a thing or two about pretty pictures and cute puppies, both of which she tweets about @mylaurenhansen.