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Voice Actors Check In, Events Cancelled After Quake Rocks Hokkaido

Update: An earlier version of this article stated that Iori Nomizu's parents' home had collapsed, when actually objects in the home fell, but the house is okay. I regret this error and it has been corrected below.

This summer has been a difficult one for the citizens of Japan as multiple natural disasters have succeeded one after the other. The western coast of Japan was battered by heavy rainfall that caused landslides, especially in the Hiroshima area in early July. The death toll rose to 200 as citizens in the Hiroshima, Okayama and Ehime areas fled their homes. Typhoon 12, also known as Typhoon Jongdari, hit Japan's southern coast that same month causing injuries to at least 24 people and killing 10.

The metropolis of Tokyo wasn't spared either, as a heat wave lingered over the area and brought high temperatures in July and August. Approximately 30,000 were hospitalized for heat-related illnesses and estimates attribute hundreds of deaths to the soaring temperatures. Approximately 180 Comiket attendees were treated for heat exposure within the first three hours of the event.

The season is waning to a close, but unfortunately the heat wave didn't mark the end of Japan's summer of catastrophes. A magnitude-6.6 quake struck Hokkaido on Thursday morning, burying homes, disrupting power for millions, and killing at least seven and injuring 150 people. Some citizens near the epicenter of the quake of Atsuma are missing.

Voice actors, anime staff, and entertainers with home towns in Hokkaido took to Twitter to check in following the earthquake. The following individuals have checked in.

• Singer Mikuni Shimokawa (Fairy Tail, Full Metal Panic! theme songs)
• Voice actress Mai Goto
• Iris idol member Saki Yamakita
• Voice actress Naoko Matsui
• Voice actress Yuka Hirata
• Singer and voice actress Iori Nomizu.

Several anime and video game related events are cancelled due to the earthquake. Nintendo's Japan account announced that its planned Nintendo Direct presentation originally set for 7 a.m. on September 7 is postponed.

The "Love Live! Sunshine!! Club Activity LIVE & FAN MEETING 2018 Unit Cross Country Tour" event will not hold its upcoming concert in Sapporo. The Guilty Kiss idol unit was scheduled to hold two performances at the Nitori Culture Hall on September 9. The venue is currently closed for safety measures. Ticket holders may be able to transfer their tickets to one of the other concerts on the tour or receive a refund through ePlus.

Companies are beginning to reach out to help with relief efforts. Staff of the the Chinese smartphone game Azur Lane wrote on Twitter on Thursday that the Yostar company will donate 10 million yen (US$90,000) for local reconstruction and relief for victims affected by the disaster.

Source: Animate Times, Love Live! Sunshine!! official site, Nintendo's official Twitter account, CNN (Yoko Wakatsuki, Chie Kobayashi)