UPDATE: Local Japanese Woman Awaits Word From Family Back Home

UPDATE:

Lake Elsinore resident Kaori Robidous, an employee at Sushi Zen on Grape St., reported Friday night that all her family members in Japan are safe.

Robidous was working a hectic dinner rush at the restaurant, but she was all smiles.

"I spoke to my family today. Everyone is good," she said. "They are all safe."

3/10 ORIGINAL POST:

Aftershocks continue to rock Japan, but Lake Elsinore resident Kaori Robidous is breathing a sigh of relief now that she's had a chance to talk to her mother.

“I spoke to my mom today,” she is fine. “I feel much better now.”

In 2006, Robidous moved from Japan to Lake Elsinore. The young Japanese woman left her relatives behind and now works at Sushi Zen on Grape Street.

“I had a hard time getting a hold of my mom, but I finally heard from her this morning,” Robidous said, noting that her mother lives well west of the area most severely impacted by Friday's .

On the job at Sushi Zen Friday morning, Robidous said she has been trying to reach other family members who live in Tokyo.

“I can’t get a hold of them,” she said. “I have been emailing and calling, but nothing yet. It's the middle of the night there, so I don't think I will hear anything for a while."

Robidous said she is optimistic, but is anxiously watching news reports.

According to the Associated Press, more than 50 aftershocks have been reported in Japan since a magnitude 8.9 temblor struck earlier today and caused a massive tsunami that has killed hundreds and left hundreds more missing.

Just after 11 a.m. PST Friday (early Saturday morning in Japan), a 6.6 earthquake struck about 105 miles north of Tokyo and caused buildings to sway, but there were no immediate reports of damage.

Closer to the epicenter, however, the news is dire. Reports out of Japan indicate more than 300 bodies were found in the northeastern coastal city of Sendai, the city in Miyagi prefecture closest to the epicenter.

And officials fear the number will continue to climb.