Hundreds of people attended an outdoor service in Christchurch, which continues to rebuild from the magnitude 6.3 quake that destroyed much of its downtown. A separate service was also held in the northern Japanese city of Toyama, home to 12 students who died in the quake. Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel talked about the 28 Japanese citizens who died, the largest number of victims from any country outside of New Zealand. The 12 Japanese students were having lunch at King’s Education, an English language school for international students, when the quake struck, destroying the building. Masatsugu Yokota, whose daughter Saki died at age 19 in the quake, told NHK public television that he still misses her.

Source: ABC News February 22, 2021 02:25 UTC