article_snippet: TV footage showed victims and volunteers joining hands in prayer near the shell of a tsunami-hit building in the port town of Minamisanriku, one of the many stark reminders of the destruction.
article_snippet: Mourners in the  town of Namie, near the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan, lay flowers and offer a prayer for flowers parents killed by the earthquake and tsunami four years ago that killed nearly 16,000 people and continues to wreak misery for thousands of others .
article_snippet: Remembering Japan's worst peace-time disaster: A woman prays in front of a relative's grave which was damaged by the earthquake and tsunami four years ago .
article_snippet: A relative of tsunami victims offers a flower bouquet at the altar in Namie, near the striken  
article_snippet: Balloons in the shape of doves are released into the air during a memorial service for victims of the 2011 quake-tsunami disaster in Natori .
article_snippet: Respecting the dead: People offer prayers for the victims of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami as People observe a moment of silence at 2.46 pm when a magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck off Japan's northeastern coast four years ago, at Ginza shopping district in Tokyo .
article_snippet: People offer a silent prayer for tsunami victims at the time of a magnitude 9.0 earthquake during a memorial service at the former Yuriage junior high school . '
article_snippet: Buddhist monks offer prayers for tsunami and earthquake victims at Soma in Fukushima on Wednesday .
article_snippet: Buddhist monks offer prayers before an altar at Soma in Fukushima on March 11, 2015 on the fourth anniversary day of massive earthquake and tsunami hit JapanJapan, splintering whole communities and killing nearly 16,000 people .
article_snippet: In the shadow of the Fukushima Daiichi plant on Wednesday, former residents of the nearby evacuated town of Namie placed flowers at a temporary altar and bowed toward the sea.
article_snippet: Floral tributes: Police officers offer chrysanthemums for victims of the 2011 quake-tsunami disaster during a memorial ceremony at Namie .
article_snippet: Police officers observe a moment's silence for victims of the 2011 quake-tsunami disaster during a memorial ceremony at Namie Namie .