Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation

An airplane arrived at midday on Monday, March 14, in Tokyo, bringing the first shipment of relief materials from the Tzu Chi Foundation for the survivors of the devastating earthquake which rocked the country last Friday. It will be the first of many such shipments.

The foundation first delivered 5,000 eco-friendly blankets to a warehouse operated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at Sanzhong in northern Taiwan on Sunday evening. At 9.15 a.m. on Monday, an aircraft of China Airlines left the nearby Taoyuan international airport with the shipment and arrived at Haneda airport in Tokyo at 12.55 p.m. Foundation spokesman Rey Her said that, in addition to the blankets, the shipment included 400 boxes, or 3.5 tons, of instant rice and 100 boxes, or one ton, of nuts, with a total value of NT$35 million.

Following the earthquake, the foundation's branch in Japan set up a telephone and Internet service to enable Japanese and Taiwan people to communicate with their loved ones. On Sunday two Japanese and six Taiwanese used the service. Telecommunications links with the northeast, where the quake struck, are not stable; the volunteers are doing their best. Master Cheng Yen has asked the volunteers at the branch to provide all the help they can, like a good host.