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The 22nd marked three weeks since the earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula on the 1st of this month. I’d like to introduce you to Kohei Takahashi, a reporter who spent 6 days covering the situation as an FNN staffer. Power and water outages continue in disaster-affected areas. The evacuation period has been prolonged, and there is no prospect of restoring livelihoods. On January 1, an earthquake occurred on the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture with a maximum seismic intensity of 7.0. Reporter Kohei Takahashi: “The first floor is completely destroyed. I think the second floor is at my eye level.” Thirteen days after the earthquake, near the epicenter, completely destroyed houses remained standing in the city of Wajima – a sight that is amazing. made me want to close my eyes. Reporter Kohei Takahashi: “The damage is particularly severe in this area. Here the power lines are at face height. Here houses collapsed, smashing cars.” According to Ishikawa Prefecture, for now. The number of confirmed casualties was 233. More than 34,000 homes were damaged, and 99 of the 108 people reported dead by Ishikawa Prefecture were known to have died due to house collapses. Reporter Kohei Takahashi: “It’s been 12 days since the outbreak at the Wajima Morning Market in Wajima City, but the smell of burnt furniture and garbage is still in the air.” Approximately 200 buildings at the Wajima morning market. , which was one of the morning markets and an important tourism resource of the region, was destroyed by fire immediately after the earthquake. So far, 10 bodies have been found in the burnt ruins during searches by police and others over several days. Mr Nagatake Tomimizu, head of the morning market association, was concerned about the restoration of the morning market, which had been reduced to ashes. Wajima Morning Market Union Chairman Nagatake Tomimizu: “I am very worried about what will happen after this since my livelihood (shops) is not in such a state. Earthquakes also cast a big shadow on a city’s survival. traditional industries. Toshihiro Yamane (74): “If I didn’t have a car, I would have been crushed by this house.” Toshihiro Yamane (74 years old) is a varnish master in Wajima. He and his wife were trapped in their destroyed home and factory, and although they managed to escape through a narrow crack, they lost their tools and lost the will to continue working. Toshihiro Yamane (74): “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to get back on track if I end up doing this job, Wajima’s varnish job. I wonder what is better for me – to live or die? I read in the newspapers that people who think it will be more difficult for them to survive and gain courage will gain courage if they have energy, but this is not true.” “In this area, the full extent of the damage is still unknown, and many people who died as a result of natural disasters are worried about their future lives. Construction and applications for temporary housing have begun in the area, but there is no electricity or water and people are so exhausted from the long evacuation that some say they don’t know where to start. I also surveyed the evacuation center in Wajima City and found that most of the people staying there were elderly, and although they had enough food and drinking water, there were also people who had run out of medications for chronic diseases due to long stays in evacuation center. During the evacuation period, I felt that many people were feeling unwell due to the spread of infectious diseases such as colds and the new coronavirus. Toilet trailers played an active role in this situation. In the prefecture, a trailer donated by the Sandwich Man to the city of Kesennuma was sent to a primary school in the city of Wajima to help evacuees avoid going to the toilet and increasing the risk of infection. Ishikawa Prefecture recommends secondary evacuation to hotels, inns, etc., but the biggest concern if evacuation time is extended is death due to the disaster. To prevent related deaths, Ishikawa Prefecture has provided 1,061 “secondary evacuation shelters” with enough space for approximately 30,000 people, but as of the 21st the number of host residents remains at 123 facilities and 2,607 people. Some people said they didn’t want to leave the place where they were born and raised, while others said they couldn’t easily leave because of work. In addition, some people are hesitant to evacuate because they have pets. This time I was able to interview a man who had undergone a secondary evacuation with his dog. Tatsuo Naka (71), a disaster victim from Wajima, and his dog Kuro. They were stranded by a landslide caused by the earthquake and were rescued by a Self-Defense Force helicopter on the 11th of this month. He is currently sheltering in a hotel in the city of Komatsu in western Ishikawa Prefecture while waiting for roads to be restored. To prevent deaths from the disaster, Ishikawa Prefecture has designated 1,061 hotels and inns outside the disaster area as secondary evacuation points, but they say there is not enough room to accommodate evacuees with pets. Tatsuo Naka (71): “There are times when I evacuate without my dog, but I was happy when they told me that I could evacuate with my dog. I wanted to protect Kuro, so I did it together with all my heart.” San has a reason to protect Kuro. Kuro’s wife Noriko, who loved dogs and always looked after Kuro, died during the evacuation. Tatsuo Naka: “My mother has been taking care of Kuro for a long time. I think life in evacuation was a little hard for her. It was cold and she must have been careful.” Everyone has their own reasons for not being able to leave the disaster zone, and it’s hard for me to feel this. Because of the topography of the Noto Peninsula, dotted with small villages, and the problem of aging infrastructure that is common throughout the country, reconstruction efforts face an uphill battle. Since the earthquake, nearly 7,000 homes in Shiga city have been left without water supply. Water officials from local governments across the country gathered to work on restoration. Shingo Inoue, construction department of the northern district of the Yokohama City Water Supply Bureau: “We are now passing water through water pipes and will work to find places where there is suspected water leakage.” If the road is laid, there is a risk of cracks in the road and secondary damage such as flooding, so the work requires care. Reporter Kohei Takahashi: “This is a water leak detector that electrically amplifies sound to check for water leaks in water pipes buried underground. The sound we hear allows us to determine if there is a leak, so we continue to operate consistently. pipes are scattered along every narrow road. When a leak is found, we remove the asphalt, repair the plumbing, and then slowly drain the water to check for problems. Shingo Inoue, Northern District Construction Department, Yokohama City Water Supply Bureau: “Repairs and water supply to the main streets and main pipelines have been completed, but the streets in residential areas, called branch streets, are still closed, and the water has been cut off, I think, by half. there is still no water.” Ishikawa Prefecture said preliminary restoration of six cities and towns where water has been cut off almost throughout the area is expected to take place after the end of February. Additionally, power outages continue in the Wajima City urban area, and as seen at night, the situation is pitch black. Crimes such as thefts were also confirmed in the disaster-stricken area, and police patrolled the area in patrol cars throughout the night. Continuing our reporting, we also spent some time sleeping in cars and can only imagine how worried people affected by the disaster must be. As a citizen of Miyagi Prefecture who experienced the earthquake, I believe it is important to continue to support the affected areas in the long term.