Normally, Babu does not enjoy taking walks. But, the elderly shih tzu, insisted on leaving the house minutes after the March 11 earthquake in Japan.

Babu stubbornly headed for a nearby hill rather than taking their usual route along the coastal city streets of Miyako. The owner relented and followed.

Minutes after climbing the hill, a devastating wall of mud and water slammed into the town, flattening the district of Taro-Kawamukai where they lived about 200 meters from the coast.

(READ the story w/ photo in Yomiuri.co.jp)