It has been 10 years since the Great East Japan Earthquake.


In the affected areas, silence was held at the time of the earthquake.

Iwate Miyako Join hands on the seawall

In the Taro district of Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture, locals gathered on the seawall and joined hands at 2:46 pm when the earthquake struck to pray to the deceased.



Before the earthquake, the Taro district of Miyako City had one of the largest tide embankments in Japan with a height of 10 meters and a total length of 2.4 km, also known as the Great Wall of China.



However, in the wake of the earthquake, the tsunami rushed over the seawall, and 181 people were killed or missing in the Taro area.



In the district, locals gathered on the seawall on March 11th every year to commemorate the dead, and more than 300 people gathered this year.



Then, at 2:46 pm when the earthquake struck, I kept silent and joined hands.



Every year, everyone held hands and kept silent, but this time, as a countermeasure against the new coronavirus, we stopped holding hands following last year.



After silence, about 100 children from the local Taro Daiichi Elementary School flew balloons with strips of paper on the themes of "life" and "reconstruction" into the sky and prayed to the victims.



Eiko Aratani, who rebuilt her home on a hill after her home in the Taro district was washed away, said, "I'm spending 10 years thinking that every day is a death anniversary, not a break, because my neighbors have died."



Takemi Iizuka, a third grader in elementary school, said, "I wrote a wish in a strip of paper so that the earthquake would not happen again. If a disaster occurs, I would like to escape to an evacuation site or a hill."



A part of the seawall will be left as the remains of the earthquake that Iwate Prefecture and Miyako City will convey the memories and lessons of the tsunami, and a new seawall with a height of 14.7 meters and a total length of 1.2 km will be left on the sea side of this seawall. Is being maintained by the prefecture, and construction is scheduled to be completed by the end of this month.

Fly balloons with Miyagi Natori message

In Natori City, Miyagi Prefecture, 992 people were killed in the earthquake, including related deaths. Of these, about 450 people, including bereaved families and locals, gathered in the Yuriage area, where many died.



Then, after offering silence at 2:46 pm when the earthquake struck 10 years ago, "I'm lonely to disappear", "I'll do my best to meet with a smile someday", "Step by step, step by step" I flew all the balloons with a message to the deceased people.



Yuko Tanno (52), who lost her eldest son who was in the first year of junior high school in the tsunami, said, "I have had many encounters in the last 10 years after the earthquake. I want to say, "Occasionally, come back." Even after 10 years, nothing has changed. We will continue to live with those who have died. "

Fukushima Iwaki Disaster Public Housing Square

It has been 10 years since the accident at TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station.



Nakoso Sakai Housing Complex, a public housing for disasters in Nakoso Town, Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture, is home to approximately 140 households, including residents of Futaba Town and Okuma Town, who have been forced to evacuate due to the nuclear accident.



Ten years after the nuclear accident, nine residents gathered in the plaza in front of the meetinghouse, and when the siren was sounded at 2:46 pm when the earthquake struck, they were silent.



Sadaichi Onuma (68), who is evacuating from Futaba Town, said, "It was a very difficult 10 years when I was forced to evacuate because I was chased by my hometown. I want you to be. "