Japan Update: As of 21:30, 19 April, TOKYO

Takagi also helped, preparing a kerosene stove and futon blankets in her home. Terada says that when she came to the house at around 3 p.m., assisted by Odajima and others, the house felt warm and cozy to her.

At 6:12 p.m., as darkness was beginning to fall over the blacked-out town, a healthy baby boy was born. Takagi, who had been waiting in an adjacent room, inadvertently cried tears of joy when she heard the baby’s first cries. She says she felt it was miraculous that a baby had been born safely under such trying circumstances. Terada’s sister Nakamura, who had been helping with a flashlight, cried as well.

Using sewing string and a pair of sewing scissors she had borrowed from Takagi and then disinfected, Odajima removed the umbilical cord. When she returned to the school and gave the news of the successful birth, everyone erupted in a round of applause.

Terada has since returned to her home in Suginami Ward, Tokyo. “The people who helped me deliver were all disaster victims, some of whom had family members whose safety they were unsure about. When my son gets to his rebellious age, I want to tell him about how he was born with the help of those people,” she said while holding the baby, whom she has named Shunsuke.

Her husband Kosaku, 33, said of the boy, “I want him to become someone who will help others in need.”