Production Halted at All Plants

The damage status announced by Honda includes the collapse of a wall in the cafeteria at the Automotive R&D Center, Tochigi, in Haga Town, Tochigi Prefecture, where four-wheel vehicle research and development is conducted, resulting in the death of one male employee, aged 43. Additionally, over 30 people were injured due to damage such as collapsing walls and falling ceiling sections at multiple related facilities within Tochigi Prefecture. Operations have also been suspended at the Saitama Factory in Sayama City, Saitama Prefecture, the Tochigi Factory in Moka City, Tochigi Prefecture, and the Hamamatsu Factory in Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture. The situation at Honda facilities and dealerships is currently still being confirmed.

In response to this earthquake, and considering the ongoing efforts for societal recovery such as power conservation and rolling blackouts, as of the 14th, production activities have been suspended at the Saitama Factory, Tochigi Factory, Hamamatsu Factory, as well as the Ogawa Plant in Ogawa Town, Saitama Prefecture, and the Suzuka Factory in Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture. From the 15th to the 20th, in addition to the aforementioned, production activities will be halted at all production bases, including the Kumamoto Factory in Ozu Town, Kumamoto Prefecture. Furthermore, all business sites in the heavily impacted Tochigi region will suspend employee attendance until the 20th to carry out recovery efforts at the facilities.

Kumamoto Factory

Hamamatsu Factory

Donates 300 Million Yen in Relief Funds

For support to the affected areas, Honda will donate 300 million yen in relief funds and provide a total of 1,000 gasoline generators and generators using household cassette gas, along with 5,000 cans of cassette gas. Additionally, personnel will be dispatched to provide operational guidance for the generators.

Announcements were also made regarding recruitment activities and prospective employees. For those scheduled to join in April, if the applicant or their family has been affected by the disaster, their start date may be postponed by approximately two months upon request. For the new graduate recruitment activities for those scheduled to join in April 2012, which were planned to commence in April, applicants from the six Tohoku prefectures and Ibaraki Prefecture will have their selection period postponed to June or later, even without a personal request.

If you know anyone who is scheduled to take Honda's recruitment examination, please do share this information with them. Further details are expected to be announced on Honda's recruitment website in April.