(HYOGO, Japan) -- Hundreds of people are already confirmed dead from the tsunami that roared ashore in eastern Japan.  Greensboro native Eric Martin is an English teacher living in Hyogo, Japan. He said natives are now bracing for aftershocks.

"Everyone is being advised to stay away from the waters and so that is a little difficult, especially here, we're sort of on the east coast and everyone here is a little worried about potential tidal waves or tsunamis coming in, so everyone is trying to stay a few miles off coast, trying to stay a few meters above sea level," said Martin.

Martin graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill and has lived in Japan for two years. He said earthquakes in Japan are just a fact of life. But the fact remains that this latest one, that registered a magnitude 8.9 is the largest earthquake in Japan's recorded history.