Japanese Students In America Check In With Family Back Home

For many Japanese students studying in America, yesterday was a day of intense anxiety. University of South Florida student Tatsuya Hirosawa was awakened by a 4 a.m. phone call from his mother in Yokohama telling him news of the massive earthquake that ravaged the island nation.

Hirosawa told ABC Action News that much of his home's contents were "broken by shaking," though his mother was in good health.

At the University of California-Riverside, Japanese students scrambled to reach their families. The university currently hosts 109 students from Japan, many of whom were unable to connect home. Bronwyn Jenkins-Deas, a UCR spokeswoman, said that the school had been unable to reach their students studying abroad at Tohoku University in Sendai. "You can't get through to the Sendai area," Jenkins-Deas said. "It's holiday time in Japan for many students. We're hoping they're out of town."

Meanwhile, 33 Taiwanese students studying in northern Japan remain unaccounted for, as does an exchange student who once studied at Western Washington University.

How has your school been affected by the earthquake? Share you story in the comments section.

WATCH: Interview with Tatsuya Hirosawa