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Japanese official inspects Neah Bay flotsam

PORT ANGELES, Wash. — An official from the Japanese consulate in Seattle has visited the home of a Port Angeles man to inspect a large black float he found near Neah Bay to determine if it's some of the first debris from the tsunami that hit Japan last March.

People think it's a float from an oyster farm near Sendai. Arnold Schouten found it in December at an isolated beach near Neah Bay.

The consulate official, Tomoko Dodo, is sending her photos of the float and notes to Tokyo to be examined by experts.

Tsunami debris is expected to reach the Washington coast in the next year or two. Dodo asks that anything that could be considered a personal keepsake for a survivor be reported to local officials or the consulate.

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