Wind Phone Japan

Many survivors say the unconnected phone line in the town of Otsuchi helps them keep in touch with their loved ones and gives them some solace as they grapple with their grief.

An old, disconnected black telephone stands in a telephone booth in the town of Otsuchi - about 20 minutes' drive from Kamaishi, Iwate Prefecture. The phone has been visited by at least 25,000 people since the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, people who have come to convey their feelings to departed loved ones "through the wind."

Many survivors say the unconnected phone line in the town of Otsuchi helps them keep in touch with their loved ones and gives them some solace as they grapple with their grief.

An old, disconnected black telephone stands in a telephone booth in the town of Otsuchi - about 20 minutes' drive from Kamaishi, Iwate Prefecture. The phone has been visited by at least 25,000 people since the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, people who have come to convey their feelings to departed loved ones "through the wind."