When an earthquake struck Japan last week, Chiyo Konishi was surrounded by television reports and newspaper articles. But all she could focus on was the safety of her family and friends in the midst of the turmoil.

"I tried to call my parents in Kobe but couldn't get through," said Konishi, a Japanese lecturer.

Margo Groff, assistant director of program support services for the Office of Education Abroad Programs (OEAP), said it was extremely upsetting for people who have relatives living in the area.

Groff said she has traveled to that area and knows University students who attended Kansai Gaikokugo Daigaku University in Hirakata City, Japan.

After the earthquake, OEAP officials feared for the safety of faculty at that university, located about 90 kilometers from the center of the damage.

"Anytime anything like this happens, we try first thing to get in touch with on-site coordinators," Groff said. "They look after students and would know what was going on."

Because of the chaos in and around the cities of Kobe, Osaka and Kyoto, direct communication was not an easy task.

"We sent faxes, and they didn't go through. But on Jan. 18, we got an answer from the on-site coordinator, and he let us know that the staff and students were safe," Groff said.

OEAP's first task was to find out if people were safe, she said. After the U.S. Department of State and the on-site coordinators reassured OEAP of the living and transportation conditions, three University students planning to leave for the Osaka region last Friday were allowed to proceed with their plans. Another student arrived in Japan prior to the earthquake and was unharmed.

"The four students are very eager to go," Groff said. "This particular group of students will have an opportunity to see a real window into the Japanese culture and their way of reacting to a crisis."

While the OEAP is striving to inform American students about the earthquake, the Friendship Association -- a Japanese organization that includes students, professors and instructors -- is trying to relay any information to their members.

"Some of the students ask me about the damage," said Keisuke Yamanishi, association president. "I have a membership to the Japanese network system, which I can access from here to Japan. So I can get articles about the earthquake."

Hiroshi Aoyama (graduate-material science and engineering) has friends in Osaka and was also able to communicate with them through the network when the telephone code line was futile. He, like many others, was distressed by the unpredictability of the occurrence.

"It could happen in our home without us knowing," Aoyama said. "People living in East Japan have been expecting big earthquakes, so every year we have drills. But on the west side of Japan people didn't expect big earthquakes."

Although western Japanese people did not expect a big earthquake, they were prepared.

Holding assimilations, implementing drills and focusing on building and architectural designs are some of the things the Japanese do to prepare for the destructive force of an earthquake, said Simon Duke, assistant professor of political science.

"Not just Japan, but other countries who sit in an earthquake belt can learn a lot from the occurrence," Duke said.

This disaster affected the lives of 1.4 million Japanese and people everywhere are noticing.

"I assume it is going to lead Japanese authorities to inspect building codes, bridges and other structure," Duke said.