Unalaska, AK – It's been two months since a major earthquake and tsunami devastated Japan's eastern coast and severely disrupted the nation's fishing. In Alaska, fishermen continue to try to raise money to repair the country's damaged fleet.

The Alaska Fishing Industry Relief Mission (AFIRM) has brought together various industry leaders to coordinate fundraising efforts to help their Japanese counterparts.

Mark Vinsel is the secretary-treasurer of the group and is also the executive director of the group United Fishermen of Alaska. He says that AFIRM has seen a large number of contributions come in during the past few weeks and has already met initial goal of a quarter of a million dollars.

Vinsel says that the group has $186,000 in the bank right now, and that much of that comes from the Bering Sea crab fleet. He says that seafood processors have also given to the fund. UniSea, for example, has provided $79,000 in matching contributions.

Vinsel says that the group will continue raising money for Japanese relief efforts through the year, and hopes to raise $1 million.

But while the money has been coming in, Vinsel says that the group still has not been able to utilize it, because basic relief efforts are still underway.

Nearly 15,000 people were killed by the earthquake and tsunami, with another 10,000 still missing.