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Tokyo Disneyland – New Video of Damage to Neighborhood, Performer

New video has just been uploaded that shows recent footage of damage to the neighborhood near Tokyo Disney Resort. This car is driving right by the resort, see the Cirque Du Soliel building go by on the right early in the clip. Then look to the side of the road and cracks in the road. Sometimes the ground has shifted by a couple of feet. That whole area will need new paving, new power lines, new street lights, bus stops, etc.

This, of course, is nothing compared to what the Tsunami ravaged sections of Japan have experienced. But it does shed some light on how soon we might expect any of the Tokyo Disney hotels or Tokyo Disneyland or Tokyo DisneySea to reopen.

There’s still quite a lot of clean up to do.

Here’s video of a local news station interviewing a Tokyo Disney performer upon her return to the US. There’s also a few shots of the damage done to her apartment and neighorhood:

Below the jump is new video from inside Tokyo Disney Sea taken just before and after the quake:

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Disney resumes some activity in Japan

The Walt Disney Company announced that it will be returning some operations to Japan for administrative and Disney Store roles. This is seen as the first move to resume film, themepark, and store operations. No word on when the Disney Stores themselves will re-open, and… Read More »Disney resumes some activity in Japan

Yokai at EPCOT’s Japan Pavilion

One of the great things about the Japan pavilion is the little exhibit space where Americans are exposed to some of Japan’s cultural artifacts. For a long time there was an excellent Tin Toy exhibit with a fun video from John Lasseter. Sadly toward the… Read More »Yokai at EPCOT’s Japan Pavilion

Disney suspends all operations in Tokyo

The Walt Disney Company just announced that they have suspended all administrative and Disney store related operations in Tokyo, Japan. “Our top priority is the well-being of our employees and their families during this challenging time and we will continue to closely monitor the situation… Read More »Disney suspends all operations in Tokyo

When Should Tokyo Disneyland Reopen?

Events in Japan continue to teeter on the edge of disaster. Whether you’re a villager in Northeastern Japan whose every day is a fight for the basic necessities of survival in a post-tsunami zone or a resident of Fukushima or nearby cities (including Tokyo) where… Read More »When Should Tokyo Disneyland Reopen?

Tokyo Disneyland Update: Entertainment Cast Can Go Home

As I fell asleep last night, word from Japan was that the nuclear power plant had experienced further problems with possibility of a larger leak of radiation. To make it worse, winds were shifting driving any radio active particles in the air back toward land. This morning I awoke to news that radiation levels in Tokyo were 10 times higher than normal, which is still a ‘safe’ level but not good obviously, and the situation at the nuclear plant was now ‘catastrophic’. That’s definitely not good.

The Tokyo Disneyland entertainment cast members I’ve been following online were concerned and with good cause. Some to the point of panic ready to break their contracts and buy a $2500 air ticket on their own.

So I’m happy to hear that Disney and OLC management has stepped up to the plate and offered to send any international cast member back home, if they want, with the promise that their job would be available when the situation returns to normal. OLC is even picking up the cost of air travel. Very nice to see them step up to the plate like that. But so far Disney Cast Members have been nothing but professional and amazing, so it was almost expected that they would do this now.

Tokyo Disneyland is contributing in a different way to relief efforts. Water from pools and ponds around the town has been claimed for use as shower and toilet water (but not for drinking please). That now includes water from Tokyo DisneySea’s Mediterranean bay area (and I assume hotel pools, although this article doesn’t mention that).

Below the jump is a video taken from the monorail that shows the condition of the parks.

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Tokyo Disneyland closed to assess damage, Monorail testing underway

A few quick updates from Tokyo Disneyland.

Although entertainment cast members had been called in to rehearse on Monday, the rehearsals were canceled due to rolling blackouts scheduled for mid-day at the resort. Cast Members are dealing with their own blackouts and struggles for food and water, but a group of Disney entertainment cast members who found themselves freed up from the canceled rehearsal, picked up rakes and shovels and went out into the community to help clear away some of the debris and silt from the homes of elderly.

Here’s a pic of the crew from Disney performer @JarrodLentz‘s twitter stream. Lentz said of the adventure, “The human spirit will not be broke” and “Helping people was the best medicine so far.” I continue to be astounded by how professional and caring Tokyo Disneyland cast has been in the face of tragedy.

Although myself and others had speculated that liquefaction damage near the Monorail stations would result in a long delay in the trains returning to service. That has not been the case. Here’s a short video showing damage near one of the monorails and in the second half you can see them testing the monorail. So that’s good news for Tokyo Disneyland and OLC.

The parks themselves continue on a schedule to open after the 21st. Meanwhile they’re assessing damage and making small repairs. Below the jump is a press release put out by the Oriental Land Company after the quake:

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