It has been seven years since the eruption of Mt. Ontake, which left 63 dead and missing.
At the foot of the mountain, Otaki Village, Nagano Prefecture, a flower offering ceremony was held to commemorate the victims, and the bereaved families and others offered a silent prayer at the time of the eruption.
The eruption of Mt. Ontake on September 27, 2014 killed 58 people and left 5 missing, making it the "worst volcanic disaster after the war."
On the 27th, seven years after the eruption, a flower offering ceremony was held at the foot of Otaki Village, and due to the influence of the new corona, only local government officials participated, but bereaved families also visited near the venue. rice field.
Then, at 11:52 am, the same time as the eruption, he offered a silent prayer to the memorial monument and Mt. Ontake to mourn the victims.
Bereaved family "Sad feelings remain the same"
Kiyokazu Tokoro (59) from Ichinomiya City, Aichi Prefecture, who visited the venue for the flower offering ceremony and lost his son Yuki (26 at the time) and his fiancé Yuki Niwa (24 at the time) in an eruption seven years ago. "Today I visited this place wearing my son's white shirt and trousers. It's been 7 years and 10 years, but I'm still sad."
Safety enlightenment activities at the bereaved family trailhead
At the trailhead in Otaki Village, Nagano Prefecture, the bereaved families called on climbers to climb the mountain safely.
This activity was carried out for the first time by a group made up of bereaved families, and 10 people including the bereaved families gathered at the Tanohara mountain climbing entrance in Otaki Village and climbed a handmade key chain while calling for "Please climb with safety first". I handed it to.
On the key chain, a picture of Mt. Ontake and messages such as "collecting information before climbing" and "perfect equipment" are written.
The association is requesting Nagano Prefecture to set the month from August 27th to September 27th as "Volcano Safe Mountaineering Month" every year.
A man in his 70s who visited the mountain to take a picture said, "I don't know when the volcano will erupt due to a natural disaster, so I want to be careful."
Eiko Sherlock, who lost her brother-in-law in the eruption and is the representative of the society made by the bereaved families, said, "After seven years, I was able to move on to the stage of enlightening climbers. I want to develop the movement. "
In addition, one of the participants, Toshio Arai (79) from Tomi City, Nagano Prefecture, lost his son Mayu (41 at the time) in the eruption.
Mr. Arai said, "I put incense sticks on the altar every day and put my hands together. I can't believe it because I wish my son would come back. It's been seven years now, but I'm gradually getting to myself. It's a day to tell the story. I want to convey the feeling that he lived so hard. "
Many climbers at the memorial
Many climbers visited the mountaintop on the side of Kiso Town, Nagano Prefecture, where the memorial monument is located.
A 66-year-old man who visited with his daughter from Saga Prefecture joined hands in front of the memorial monument and said, "I was shocked to know that today was the day of the eruption. I was talking.
A 42-year-old man from Mie Prefecture who visited with his family said, "I lived in Nagoya at the time of the eruption and I could see the eruption from there. I did. "
In addition, Ikuo Mizuno (71) of Aichi Prefecture, who visited the mountain with a colleague of the company on the day of the eruption and was seriously injured by the eruption, handed a flower to the memorial monument and said, "I lost a colleague who was climbing together in the eruption. I can't forget that even after seven years. I try to climb every year to prevent it from weathering. "