As day breaks in the port city of Ofunato, residents wake up to the first anniversary of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami that killed thousands.<br/> <br />The few residents that remained said the past year has been hard.<br/> <br />(SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) 72-YEAR-OLD OFUNATO RESIDENT FUKIKO NAGASAWA SAYING:<br/> <br />"It's been a fleeting one year. I've been living the one year without being able to think about the future."<br/> <br />Like the rest of the country, the town will observe a moment of silence at 2:46 p.m. when the quake struck.<br/> <br />A "bell of hope" will ring, and mourners will sail out to sea to release lanterns.<br/> <br />In the ghost town of Okuma, where the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant lies, 20 residents and politicians returned briefly to pay their respects.<br/> <br />The 11,000 residents of Okuma and nearly 80,000 other people across Fukushima prefecture were forced to evacuate due to the high radiation.<br/> <br />For 93-year-old Tomoe Kimura, it was a chance to go back to where she lost four family members.<br/> <br />The bodies of two of them have not yet been found.<br/> <br />(SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) 93-YEAR-OLD TOMOE KIMURA SAYING:<br/> <br />"I'm just so sad, as it was a wonderful place. If it weren't for all that's happened, I would be able to come back as well. But thanks to Tepco I wasn't even able to search (for my family's bodies)."<br/> <br />In Tokyo about 80 anti-nuclear protesters gathered outside the headquarters of TEPCO which operated the Fukushima Daiichi plant.<br/> <br />The protesters say they're not convinced nuclear power is safe.<br/> <br />(SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) 55-YEAR-OLD PROTESTER HIYOKO TAKI, SAYING:<br/> <br />"The government keeps on saying it's safe, it's all lies. I'm particularly worried about our children."<br/> <br />Just two of Japan's 54 nuclear reactors are still in operation, and they are expected to close for routine maintenance by the end of April.<br/> <br />The 9.0 magnitude quake unleashed a tsunami that wiped out Japan's northeastern coast, killing nearly 16,000 people with almost 3,300 still missing.<br/> <br />Hundreds of thousands were made homeless. Many still live in temporary accommodation.<br/> <br />Sophia Soo, Reuters.
