Above, just one of the many images of smashed buildings and wrecked homes featured in Google’s new Japanese tsunami flavoured street view.The company promised to document the destruction in Northeastern Japan caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami earlier in the year, and, after a journey of more than 44,000 kilometres by the trusty Google Van, the photos were finally released.
Detailed coverage of how landscapes and lives were changed by the disaster, such as idyllic landscapes being choked with rubbish and debris and the destruction of family businesses. The stain of damp left by the high water line is visible in some pictures, along walls or buildings, allowing the viewer to understand just how fast and hard the killer wave smashed into the east of Japan.
The feature includes 360-degree photos that show the wreckage in both coastal and inland areas of Japan, and allows the user to follow the path of the earthquake and tsunami across Fukushima province and surrounding areas from the view of an earthbound passer by. Also featuring small before and after sections, documented in the city of Miyagi and down Japan’s eastern seaboard past Fukushima and through Ibaraki, captured at a time early before the disaster, the feature allows the user to truly understand the scale and effect of the disaster from an open, interactive perspective.
“When looking at images of the magnificent cities side-by-side with images of the ruins left in their place, this additional context demonstrates how truly life-changing this tragedy has been for those who live there and witnessed the destruction of their homes, neighbourhoods and even entire districts,” Google street View senior production manager Kei Kawai said on Google’s company blog.
The reason behind Google’s some say controversial decision to document the devastation is to allow scientists to understand the effect of natural disasters in detail, as well as a more poignant memorial to those who suffered in the disaster. The images are truly awe inspiring, and can be found here at Google’s ‘Build The Memory’ site here.
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