East meets West (Tokyo)

by Lee on 3/13/2008

in Photography

In the mega metropolis of Tokyo, this is about as far west as one can wander.

west Tokyo

And, perhaps appropriately, this enormous mass of water is man-made. The Ogouchi Dam, as it is known, stoically holding back a staggering capacity of 185,400,000 cubic meters of water — enough to supply the whole of Tokyo for a full 40 days.

west Tokyo

A figure that makes it the biggest reservoir, used solely as part of the water system, in the whole of Japan. Which is fascinating stuff I’m sure you’ll agree.

However, should the dam encounter difficulties, and you happen to be rather dangerously positioned down stream, sirens will sound alerting you of the oncoming deluge, allowing two particular courses of action: either calmly assess the situation and then sensibly seek protection,

west Tokyo

or, sensing the seriousness of the sirens, simply panic.

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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Neil Duckett 3/13/2008 at 2:17 pm

That first photo is amazing, i’d love to get up that way and see it myself.

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2 Jonathan 3/14/2008 at 3:39 am

Awww Lee, that first picture is wonderful!

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3 Tim O'Connor 3/17/2008 at 9:53 am

I like the sign; yeah, that’s pretty clear what to do.

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4 donkeymon 3/23/2008 at 10:40 pm

But, the kanji on that sign is wrong! Well, the okurigana is anyway. Every schoolchild knows that “abunai” is written 危ない. I would be too distracted by this oversight to think about running away.

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5 Jason 10/13/2008 at 11:57 pm

Nice shots. Looks like that place is worth a visit and good to see where all our water comes from!

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