THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
April 8, 2024 at 14:32 JST
Residents of the Fukamimachi district of Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, are reunited under the cherry blossom trees on April 7 for the first time since the New Year’s Day earthquake. (Tatsuo Kanai)
WAJIMA, Ishikawa Prefecture--Under the blooming cherry trees, residents here held their first reunion since the New Year’s Day earthquake devastated their community and scattered its residents to the wind.
In a show of resilience and hope for rebuilding ties, about 150 people joined a sakura viewing on April 7 at the playground of a closed elementary school in the city’s Fukamimachi district.
“Our house is a mess and it’s heartbreaking,” said Chiyoko Tani. “But I’m so happy to be back thanks to everyone’s help that I could cry.”
Chiyoko, 88, and her husband, Masayoshi, 87, returned to their hometown for the first time since the magnitude-7.6 temblor hit.
People from near and far gathered for the event, including around 40 residents who had evacuated to Komatsu city within the prefecture, those evacuated to Kanazawa and elsewhere and residents who chose to remain in the community.
Located eight kilometers of Wajima’s city center, Fukamimachi was a small coastal community. According to district head Shigeru Yamashita, 74, it housed about 70 households before the earthquake hit.
The quake triggered a landslide that severed the national road leading to the district, isolating the community.
Residents were rescued by Self-Defense Forces helicopters and many eventually evacuated to Komatsu.
Yamashita was surprised to see so many people gathered for the event.
“I’m so happy to see so many people here,” he said with a smile. “Seeing everyone’s smiles gave me a lot of energy. I want to work hard so that we can all live in Fukamimachi again.”
Despite losing his own home in the disaster, Yamashita has been working tirelessly alongside his fellow residents to keep their diaspora community alive. They are also searching for land within the community to build temporary housing.
(This article was written by Noriki Nishioka and Tatsuo Kanai.)
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