As someone who lived in Japan for two years—and who experiencedthe Kobe earthquake firsthand—the devastating disaster that struckthe country hit me hard from a personal standpoint.

But as soon as the magnitude ofthe event became clear, it was obvious that there would be enormousprofessional ramifications as well: an unfolding story of enormousimportance to the readers of NU—one that we would need tocover in depth over the days (and, most likely, weeks) ahead.

And I'm proud of the coverage produced by our team of reporters,which started almost immediately after the epic quake and tsunamiwrought such horrific damage, with our first reports going uponline in hours. By Monday, Susanne Sclafane and Chad Hemenway hadassembled a comprehensive report on property-loss estimates—andbegan to explore the question of the strategic impact of the eventon the industry and what the effect would be on global insurancerates.

Now, as I write this just six days after the earth shifted, wehave an online package of 15 stories—moving, gripping slideshowswhose images reveal all-too-powerfully the awful extent of thecatastrophe; insightful analysis on how the quake-tsunami twindisaster revealed a potential flaw in cat models; and anexamination of the fallout on the stock prices of insurancecompanies.

Robert Hyle, the editor of our sister publication, TechDecisions, called up some of his key contacts for a blog hewrote on the effect on insurance IT strategy. And of course, thiswas a triple-barreled tragedy, with a quake, a tsunami—and thestill-evolving nuclear-plants crisis. Mark Ruquet investigated thisangle and discovered that exposure for private insurers is likelyto be light—at least for now. And checking in on the fallout on theother side of the Pacific, Phil Gusman found insurers in Californiacan expect to see business-interruption and other claims fromdamage caused to marinas by tsunami waves that hit the coast.

Our full-bore coverage of the quake in the issue in your handsstarts on page 6 and offers what I think is must-read analysis forindustry professionals. And this story obviously is far from over.We will continue to deliver digital updates to you about theindustry-shifting implications, and I encourage you all to bookmarkour special, dedicated section: http://www.propertycasualty360.com/tag/japan-earthquake-and-tsunami.

On a final note, in the wake of our reports on disasters,whether natural or man-made, we inevitably get feedback decryingour lack of attention to the human element. Rest assured that theNU team is deeply affected by the suffering endured by thevictims—but we know that our audience is best served by our stayinglaser-focused on the insurance issues.

And we take comfort in knowing that we're playing a small partin aiding the recovery—because the readers of NU areplaying a major role in that effort by doing what the insuranceindustry does best: helping people put back together theirshattered lives.