Photo/Illutration Ishikawa Governor Hiroshi Hase speaks at a news conference in Kanazawa on April 1. (Yoshinori Doi)

SUZU, Ishikawa Prefecture--Three months after the powerful Noto Peninsula earthquake, most houses here are still without running water, forcing residents to rely on alternative sources.

Prefectural officials missed the target of restoring water to all households by the end of March and it seems that life without access to running water will continue for a while longer.

“I am frankly sorry,” Ishikawa Governor Hiroshi Hase apologized at a news conference on April 1.

The New Year’s Day earthquake caused water outages in 110,000 households in 16 municipalities.

As of March 1, that number had decreased to 18,000 households in seven municipalities. 

Hase predicted that the water service would be restored in most parts of Suzu by the end of March.

On April 2, the prefecture announced that the number of households without running water had fallen to about 6,680 in four municipalities.

However, about 4,250 of those are concentrated in Suzu. This accounts for more than 80 percent of the city’s 4,800 households with water service contracts.

Prefectural officials said that their new estimate is that water will be fully restored by the end of May.

The officials blamed extensive damage to the water purification plant and water pipes for the delay.

According to a government survey, there were 2.63 damaged points per kilometer of water pipes in Wajima city, which sustained less damage to its water infrastructure compared to neighboring Suzu.

The number of damaged points per kilometer of water pipes was 0.03 in Kumamoto during the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquakes and 0.07 in Sendai during the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, highlighting significantly more damage to water infrastructure caused by the Noto Peninsula quake.

The government has not yet assessed the full extent of the damage to Suzu’s water pipes.

“People can’t live without a sense of security,” said Hase. “We will work with the municipal officials to proceed with full-scale restoration.”

“The residents are eagerly waiting,” said Suzu Mayor Masuhiro Izumiya. “We’ll do everything we can.”

'WATER OF LIFE'

For the past three months, Suzu residents have been using old and new technologies to cope with the water crisis.

Local residents regularly visit Suzu Hachimangu shrine to collect well water from its hand-washing basin.

“I’m very grateful that I can use the water here for laundry and the toilet,” said a 56-year-old man from the neighborhood.

“This is literally the water of life,” said Tetsunori Takayama, a 58-year-old priest at the shrine. “I thought it would be helpful for everyone, so I opened it up right after the earthquake.” 

In addition to the existing wells, new ones have been dug since the disaster.

By the end of February, Me-sai Corp., a geological survey company in Osaka Prefecture, had drilled wells free of charge at 14 locations in the prefecture, including seven sites in Suzu.

New technologies are also playing a role.

Tokyo-based Wota Corp. provided 17 shower tents and 30 hand-washing stations at shelters across the city by the end of March.

The devices feature artificial intelligence technology to secure water quality, recycling 98 percent of the water used with six filters to remove hair, bacteria, and other contaminants, according to the company.

“I’m grateful that the shower is inside the evacuation center so I don’t have to go out,” said an 84-year-old woman staying at an evacuation shelter in Misaki Junior High School.

“It’s a relief to have a private space,” she said.

With showers available at the shelters, vulnerable evacuees no longer have to travel long distances to use communal baths provided by the Self-Defense Forces.

“In disaster zones where water tank trucks are limited, private firms with expertise in well drilling and water-saving technology can be a valuable asset,” said Takahiro Endo, a professor of environmental policy at Osaka Metropolitan University, who assessed the post-disaster use of wells in the neighboring city of Nanao.

(This article was written by Yoshinori Doi, Mayumi Ueda and Shoko Tamaki.)

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