Photo/Illutration Eiju Hayashi joins recovery efforts in Chino, Nagano Prefecture, after the city was hit by torrential rain in September. (Koji Shimizu)

OBUSE, Nagano Prefecture--Heavy lifting is the name of the game at a “theme park” opened here by a temple priest.

Eiju Hayashi’s inspiration was based on his experiences helping to rebuild areas devastated by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster.

The theme park focuses on disaster preparedness and recovery, and it offers hands-on experience and training for those interested in operating heavy machinery.

On a recent day, excavators were lined up on a plot of unused farmland adjacent to an apple orchard while 20 men and women wearing hard hats took turns to operate machinery.

Hayashi also offers an on-site two-day workshop where participants can obtain a driver’s license to operate small heavy machinery.

More than 600 people, including Hayashi, have gained the qualification to date, with women accounting for 30 percent of the total.

Hayashi’s goal is to train 1,000 disaster volunteers.

“If there are 1,000 volunteers when a disaster strikes, 100 of them can engage (directly in disaster-relief efforts),” he said. “They can provide more impetus and recovery support than public assistance in local communities.” 

Hayashi set up a support group after the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami hit in 2011, and spent two years visiting disaster-stricken areas to offer study assistance and provide meals.

He has spent the past few years operating earthmoving equipment in and outside Nagano Prefecture while he serves as vice chief priest at Jokoji temple here.

Hayashi came up with the idea of starting a heavy machinery workshop following Typhoon No. 19 that made the banks of the Chikumagawa river collapse in October 2019.

He recalled that he quickly reached his limit while working with a shovel to clear farmland inundated with mud.

This prompted him to recruit volunteers licensed to operate heavy machinery. But Hayashi was unable to find enough operators. Only a few were qualified and sufficiently experienced to operate the machines in such hazardous conditions.

Two months after the typhoon, Hayashi started hosting workshops to help raise public awareness of the need for disaster preparedness.

Staff members with a strong background operating heavy machinery serve as instructors to teach participants how to work safely and avoid pitfalls in disaster areas.

Workshop revenues are used to cover expenses for support activities.

Visitors to the theme park can also try their hands at driving buggies and farming. The idea is to show people how to prepare for emergencies while their daily lives are not under threat.

Hayashi dreams of expanding his operation nationwide.

“I want to spread awareness and action to help ensure local communities are able to protect themselves,” he said.

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