Asia Bizz: After the deadly tsunami hit Tokyo on March 11, more than 40,000 tiles made for the renovation of a Japanese station have been recovered – after they were swept off by the natural disaster. The tiles were produced in Miyagi Prefecture and will be used for the restoration of the JR Tokyo Station.
Some of the slate tiles that have been recovered, will be used for covering the lower part of the domed roof on the Marunouchi side of the Tokyo Station building. The slate tiles were used when the station was re-constructed in the year 1947 after it was destroyed in the World War II.
Before the tsunami had scattered the tiles, a construction company in Ishinomaki in the prefecture, Kumagai Master Thathers Co., had stored them in a storage place. After the tsunami had hit, the employees of the company went and collected the tiles one by one.
It was found that around than 40,000 of the 45,000 tiles were usable after it was washed and cleaned. The condition of the tiles was checked by the East Japan Railway Co. For the construction of the roof, more than 457,000 tiles are needed, and the Japanese company has said that they would use tiles from Spain and the other parts of Tome, which were left unaffected by the disaster, to make up for the difference.
