Japan: Tsunami clean-up

In a series of photos, parts of Japan hit by the earthquake and tsunami are shown shortly after the disaster, then after nearly three months of cleanup efforts. In this combo, in the first picture, taken March 11, 2011, tsunami waves surge over a residential area in Natori, Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan. Then on June 3, 2011, power shovels are at work on reconstruction in the same area. On Saturday, June 11, 2011, Japan marks three months since the earthquake and tsunami.

March 13, 2011: Destroyed houses and debris fill a parking lot of a shopping center in Otsuchi, Iwate prefecture, northeastern Japan, two days after the disaster.
June 3, 2011: Houses and debris are cleared.

March 14, 2011: Tsunami survivors walk with plastic containers and kettles to carry drinking water through a street blocked by a fallen tank and other debris in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan
June 3, 2011: Only one damaged house, center, stands along the same street.

April 6, 2011: A sightseeing boat sits on a building in Otsuchi, Iwate prefecture, northeastern Japan.
June 3, 2011: The same area with the boat gone.

March 19, 2011: Vehicles park on the ground of a junior high school serving a refugee center in Rikuzentakata, Iwata prefecture, northeastern Japan.
June 3, 2011: The same area with temporary houses set up for survivors.

March 13, 2011: A group of firefighters head for a rescue operation in Minamisanriku, Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan.
June 6, 2011: A truck goes by the same road lined with electric poles.

March 16, 2011: Buildings are surrounded by debris in Onagawa, Miyagi prefecture, northeastern Japan.
June 3, 2011: The debris is almost cleared.

March 12, 2011: A ship swept away by tsunami lies among other debris in Miyako, Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan.
June 4, 2011: A man on a bicycle pedals past a pedestrian on the same road.

March 18, 2011: Fire engines park among the debris as a search for missing people goes on in Rikuzentakata, Iwate prefecture, northeastern Japan.
June 6, 2011: The debris is almost cleared.

March 20, 2011: A damaged house stands in a flooded residential area in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture.
June 3, 2011: The sun shines over the same area.

March 12, 2011: A sea coast is filled with destroyed houses and debris at Ishinomaki, Miyagi prefecture.
June 3, 2011: The same area with the houses and debris cleared.

March 13, 2011: A burned pickup truck lies among debris swept away by tsunami in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture.
June 3, 2011: Marguerites are in bloom along a cleared street corner in the same area.

March 13, 2011: Debris is piled up by damaged buildings in Ofunato, Iwate prefecture.
June 3, 2011: Several houses have been demolished.

March 12, 2011: Two-car trains lie in ruin after being swept away by tsunami at Shinchi station, Fukushima Prefecture, with only its railway bridge section left standing.
June 3, 2011: A truck is parked near the bridge.

March 24, 2011: People walk along Prefectural Highway 30 sandwiched by floodwaters in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture.
June 4, 2011: In the same area, an earth mover goes on with reconstruction work.

March 23, 2011: Damaged houses stand amid debris swept away by tsunami in Miyako, Iwate Prefecture.
June 3, 2011: Debris is almost cleared.

March 13, 2011: A tsunami-beached ship lies among debris in Kesennuma, Miyagi prefecture.
June 3, 2011: The ship remained there with little cleaned around it.

March 12, 2011: Damaged cars are submerged in flooded residential area with other debris swept away by tsunami in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture.
June 3, 2011: A car goes by debris in the cleared street.

March 18, 2011: An overturned car sits on the rooftop of a damaged building in Onagawa, Miyagi Prefecture.
June 3, 2011:The car still stays in the same position on the building while its surrounding area is almost cleaned up.

March 14, 2011: A shinto torii, or gateway, leading to Kozuchi shrine stands among the debris in Otsuchi, Iwate prefecture.
June 3, 2011: The debris nearly all cleared.

March 24, 2011: Ships swept away by tsunami are piled up each other on the ground in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture.
June 3, 2011: The ships stay in the same position in the area almost unchanged.

March 14, 2011: Rescue workers search for tsunami survivors amid debris in a residential area in Higashimatsushima, Miyagi Prefecture.
June 3, 2011: The ships stay in the same position in the area almost unchanged.

March 12, 2011: A ship swept away by tsunami sits amid debris-covered residential area in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture.
June 3, 2011: The ships stay in the same position in the area getting cleaned up.

March 15, 2011:A a ship swept away by tsunami sits amid debris-covered residential area in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture.
June 3, 2011: The ship stays in the same position in the area almost cleaned up.

March 12, 2011: Residents wait for rescuers on the balcony of the debris-dangling house in Rikuzentakata, Iwate prefecture.
June 3, 2011: The debris almost cleared.

March 15, 2011: Ddebris from houses swept away by tsunami are left untouched in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture.
June 3, 2011: Some buildings stand in the same area almost cleaned up.

March 24, 2011: A TV antenna leans near a stone statue of the guardian deity of children sitting among the debris in Ishinomaki, Miyagi prefecture.
June 4, 2011: The debris cleared and the statue wearing a new red cap.