Japan’s Miracle Pine Tree

As cleanup continues 2 years after the devastating tsunami that hit Japan, a decision was taken to preserve the memory of the miracle pine tree.

This 88 foot tall pine tree was the last standing among a forest of 70,000 trees that were completely wiped out along the coast in Rikuzentakata, Iwate prefecture.

This tree survived for nearly 1 year and 6 months after the tsunami but eventually died due to high levels of saline introduced into its environment. It was felled later and giant molds were created to again form the trunk and branches as they stood when the tree was alive. The monument was unveiled in March 2013.