June 19, 2006

TOKYO, JAPAN - As North Carolina's men's lacrosse team prepared to meet Gakushuin University's varsity team Tuesday afternoon in Tokyo, the Tar Heel players and staff received an unusually early wake up call at the Tokyo Prince Hotel in the form of a reminder from Mother Nature of the fragility of the planet.

At 6:47 a.m. Tuesday morning, hotel guests were startled from their beds by the occurrence of a 4.8 Richter scale earthquake which was centered near the south coast of Honshu, Japan, 10 miles East Northeast of the capital city of Tokyo.

At 4.8 on the Richter scale, the earthquake is considered light by Japanese standards. Although the force of the quake was clearly felt in Tokyo, no buildings sustained any structural damage and business goes on as usual in one of the world's most populous cities, featuring 12.1 million residents.

Just as on any other workday, the streets are full of business people and tourists. UNC will leave the hotel at 1:30 p.m. and bus to Ohi Field where it will play Gakushuin University and then be treated to a reception hosted by university staff at the conclusion of the 60-minute game.