The people of Tuscaloosa’s sister city Narashino, Japan, are fairly lucky. At least, they’re lucky as far as victims of the recent catastrophic earthquake and the resulting tsunami go. Only one death has been reported in Narashino since the earthquake struck 11 days ago, and most of the city is intact. Also, radiation from the crippled nuclear reactors in Fukushima has not reached the city in noticeable levels.

A few buildings have fallen, the sewer system is badly damaged, and some roads have collapsed, cracked or flooded, but otherwise all indications point toward a fast recovery for the Japanese city, which is joined to Tuscaloosa through the Sister Cities International program.

Narashino is now faced with a new challenge — providing aid to other Japanese citizens who have been less fortunate. Resident Hiroko Imai wrote in an email to the Tuscaloosa Sister City Commission that the city was accepting those who suffered because of the disaster into Narashino and giving them whatever they could spare, like milk for babies and clothes and coats for refugees.

The Tuscaloosa Sister Cities Commission is encouraging donations to the American Red Cross for aiding all those who need it in Japan, but has also established the Narashino Disaster Assistance Fund to send money directly to Narashino, where officials there will use it to help refugees and cities surrounding Narashino that took more damage.

“Now I know we are not alone,” Imai wrote of the aid received so far.

He said he was thankful for the lasting friendship between Tuscaloosa and Narashino, and that the Relief Fund was greatly appreciated there.

“Anytime you have a global tragedy, I think the natural inclination is for people to help and to do good things and provide aid in anyway they can,” said Lisa Keyes, director of the Tuscaloosa Sister Cities Commission. “For young people, as university students who are getting ready to be a part of this global community, this is a great first step in taking part in something to expand your horizons as well as help grow Tuscaloosa borders globally.”

Keyes also said that aid does not have to be monetary, but can include time, interest or thoughts. She added that aid is just the willingness to help another human being who needs it.

“In Tuscaloosa, every March we have celebrated the Sakura Festival which was founded to commemorate establishing our sister city in Japan,” Keyes explained. “There’s dancing, music, culture, education – everything unique to Japanese culture is celebrated in March in Tuscaloosa.

“In light of what has happened there, in addition to all the fun we’ve set up this year we have scheduled a ribbon-tying around the cherry trees in Narashino Grove on Sunday, at 2:30 p.m., as a sign of solidarity with the Japanese people and what they’re going through.”

Student Government Association Senator Elliot Bell, a freshman majoring in history, also encouraged students to keep the city in mind in the wake of such a powerful natural disaster.

“In my mind, something like this a great opportunity for individuals to show their support for people beyond the borders of campus,” Bell said. “The University does this well, but there’s always room for growth there.”

Bell also said that Tuscaloosa residents have more in common with those in Narashino than just the title of sister cities.

“I’d like to say I believe this is a worthy cause,” Bell said. “Those of us that were able to accepted travelers and refugees during and after Hurricane Katrina, and this city is operating much like we did during that tragedy. We should share that empathy, that common support.”

The State Department’s Sister Cities International has established more than 2,000 partnerships between American cities and foreign communities in the last 55 years, including two for Tuscaloosa — Narashino, Japan and Schorndorf, Germany. Through SCI and the Tuscaloosa Sister Cities Commission, Tuscaloosa and Narashino have had a strong relationship, including a strong student exchange program. Tuscaloosa sent groups of high school students to Narashino in 2002 and 2004 and welcomed a group of their students in Tuscaloosa in 2007.