Japanese disaster

A question: if there were a similar earthquake and tsunami in any part of the British Isles, would people on Day 8 be reported to be dying from cold and lack of food? A friend answered this question by reminding me that people in New Orleans were reported to feel themselves - and indeed to be - 'forgotten' and neglected by their government. The USA has the complication of state and federal government. But still, the film of elderly people apparently dying in Japanese shelters from the cold and lack of food and water only 150km from Tokyo is both distressing and puzzling. Answers welcome.