Pell City Rotary had two special guests at their regular meeting on Tuesday at the Municipal Complex, James Spann of ABC 33/40 and the Consul General of Japan in Atlanta, Takashi Shinozuka.

The Consul General of Japan in Atlanta, Takashi Shinozuka, was appointed to his position in January 2016. He has served as Vice Grand Master of the Ceremonies of the Imperial Household Agency and also held director-level posts in the Cabinet Office, the National Institute for Research Advancement (NIRA,) and the Economic Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Shinozuka previously served abroad in France and Myanmar but Consul General of Japan is his first post in the United States.

“As the Consul General of Japan, it is my duty to continue to strengthen economic and cultural relations between Japan and the United States, particularly with the four states in my jurisdiction: Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina,” Shinozuka released in a statement. “The Southeast is a welcome haven for both Japanese businesses and families alike and I want to continue to build on the strong bonds we have developed over these many decades.”

According to Shinozuka, the history of the Southeast U.S. and Japan reaches back more than forty years. He states currently there are more than 1,300 Japan-related businesses located in the Southeast and approximately 20,000 Japanese nationals that have relocated to the region.

“I have much to learn about the Southeast and I hope I can count on your kind support as I work toward this goal of further fostering the deep friendship between Japan and this dynamic region.”

The main task of Consulates is to foster trade and maintain commercial links between two nations, the United States and Japan in this case. Moreover, the Consulate handles issues relating to visas, passports and also handles tourists and expatriates.

“I want to build the relationship between Japan and Alabama. There are 140 Japanese companies in the state and over 2500 expatriates,” Shinozuka said. He has made 18 trips to Alabama, and says that Japan has made over $10 billion in investments through companies and job creation in the Southeast. They also have companies in almost every part of the state, including the Toyota and Honda plants.           

The major role of the Consulate is promoting trade, assisting companies in the host nation to invest in its country and vice versa. It also facilitates import and export between the two countries, which Shinozuka hopes to increase during his tenure as Consul General.

“First, our mission is helping Japanese companies and citizens that are striving in the nation (U.S.,) and second, to further the relationship between the four states that I serve and Japan.”

Shinozuka also spoke of the JET program, which encourages graduates to come to Japan for one to three years to teach English in Japanese High Schools. The Japan Consulate in Atlanta also has a program where a representative will visit local schools to teach children about Japanese culture.

“This is my first position in the United States, but it is not my first experience,” Shinozuka said. “In the 1960s, I was a kid in Saigon, South Vietnam. I am grateful to the United States for protecting our daily life.”

The second special guest James Spann spoke to Rotary members about weather related topics that were “close to his heart.” James Spann has been a meteorologist and television anchor for 38 years and worked with ABC 33/40 since their inception in 1996. 

Spann has won multiple awards throughout his career, including “Broadcaster of the Year” by the National Weather Association in 2012 and the American Meteorological Society (AMS) “Award for Broadcast Meteorology” in 2013. He has also won two Emmy awards, one for best television anchor in the Southeast U.S. in 2014 and another for live coverage of the deadly tornado, which hit Tuscaloosa in 2000.

Spann presented photos of devastating severe weather events and some of the victims that lost their lives during tornados and other severe weather.

“I am concerned that we are not respecting lightning enough,” Spann spoke to the crowd, flashing a picture of a young girl on the screen behind him. “A 12-year old girl (from Arkansas) was killed two years ago in Gulf Shores. You’ve been down there. There’s a storm everyday. You’re out and a storm blows in. People just aren’t respecting the weather much anymore.”

“Our rule is when you hear thunder you get in,” Spann continued. “I stopped a Southeastern Conference football game, this is pretty powerful, because of lightning.  Does anyone know the radius of SEC rule? 8 miles.”

He also showed pictures of “Snowmaggedon” that hit the Birmingham Metro area in January 2014, saying that meteorologists learned a lot from that event.

“There are two words you will never hear me say again: a dusting and no travel problems,” Spann said as the crowd laughed in response.  “This is a reminder that there are a lot of things we can’t do. Humility is missing in my science. Trust me, when you’ve been doing it as long as I’ve been doing it, you learn humility very quickly.”

Spann then showed the audience a map plotting tracks of the tornado outbreak six years ago on April 27, 2011.  

“Every few months we will get new reports from social scientists about this day (April 27) and we’ve learned a lot. If you don’t know, we had 62 tornadoes on that day. That number should be unacceptable for anybody in here.  The death toll on that day is 252, and that is the only number that matters to me.

Spann stated that the short term warnings were very good on that day, giving several areas 40 minutes of lead time to prepare and get to a place of safety before the storm moved through their area.  Spann was there to help educate the public on weather preparedness, and to also dispel some frequently misconstrued tales.

“Large violent tornadoes do happen in mountainous areas. Don’t let your grandmother tell you that a tornado will not happen on a hill or a valley, because they will,” Spann said. “We have a perception that tornadoes don’t happen where people live.”

“The first tornado of that day happened in Cullman. About 25,000 people live there. This is a success story, one of the few we had that day,” Spann described. “People had about 40 minutes lead time, which is about as good as it gets in my lifetime. They turned on the television and there it is. They knew where to go and what to do and they got there. Reportedly, not one person was killed in this town of 25,000 people.”

Spann continued to speak passionately about that day’s events, “It didn’t work this way in all of the places (that had tornadoes.) Tuscaloosa had about the same lead time, 40 minutes, but in this case 52 people died in Tuscaloosa.”

Spann shared a bit of his personal story of living in a small town in south Alabama called Greenville. After being abandoned by his father, he and his mother moved to Tuscaloosa.

“I was a hurting child. There were some wonderful people in that town that loved two strangers and took us in, helped us and encouraged us. For that reason, Tuscaloosa is a special place. “

He showed photos of the destruction in Tuscaloosa from the April 27, 2011 tornados, and stated that most places, no matter how bad it looked had a place of safety.

“This is real stuff that affects real people.  It doesn’t always happen to somebody else,” Spann was emphatic. “We’ve got to do a better job at taking care of people. This loss of life is going to haunt me for the rest of my life.”

Spann showed photos of people that were killed during the April 27, 2011 tornados throughout Alabama, from every region and socioeconomic demographic. He said that he has spoken to several of the surviving family members, and they are still hurting from their loss.

“History will judge me for this day. I don’t know what to think about it. It was our finest moment. It was our worst moment,” Spann said. “I know we need to celebrate those that lived but all I think about are these people I’m showing you today, the ones that lost their lives…We’ve got to stop this from happening to somebody else, and that’s what drives me. “

Spann gave some safety tips to better protect people and their families during a tornado.  He emphasized the need for everyone to have a weather radio, and not to rely on tornado sirens.  He said that sirens cannot always be heard inside a building or during a storm. He also stated the importance of wearing a helmet, even if it looks “silly,” citing a UAB peer reviewed study that shows a much better chance of survival if a person is ‘lofted’ during a tornado.

He also referred people to use their smart phones and download a decent weather app on their phones to receive alerts during severe weather. Also, to talk to their families about where they will go during a storm, lowest floor, center of the house away from windows, and items to bring with them such as helmets and air horns.  With the upcoming fall season also being tornado season, Spann emphasized the importance of being prepared.           

            “We don’t know what the weather is going to be like,” Spann concluded, “but during the summer it’s pretty easy: hot, humid, and a chance of an afternoon storm!”