Rikuzen Takata - (11) Progress and reconstruction

Progress is being made.  JR East's Ofunato line was partially cleared while we were up there. I'm doubtful that the trainline will be reconstructed here,  buses may be more viable.  The concentration of population will move back from the coast. If they do decide to build a new rail line, the route will be determined as part of an overall plan to rebuild the city.

The Ofunato Line Wednesday 14/9 /2011

The Ofunato line at the same place looking the
opposite direction the following day.

The field in front of the railway line on the Wed - covered in broken
tiles.

The same ground the following day.  I'm not sure how they did it
but I assume it is surface cleaning not digging deep to remove
debris.  I imagine it depends on the way the land is going to be
used in the future the extent of digging that is needed. 

  

Temporary shops in pre-fab buildings are appearing enabling local people to start to regain some semblance of normality. 

AU mobile phones and Kumon

Lawsons convenience store.

People in the area need mental, physical, and financial support.  Having people come up makes a big difference.  Buses of volunteers stopped at the michi no eki farmers markets provide willing shoppers that put money into the economy.  I hope there are jobs for locals in the reconstruction work.  Restoration of the fishing industry infrastructure is apparently a priority for reconstruction, though it would have to be worked into an overall reconstruction plan.  Apparently only 4 of the  31 centres badly affected have reconstruction plans worked out.   It will take time, but I am hopeful the city can revive. 

Rikuzen Takata (10) the school at Otomo

At Otomo we took our lunch break in the shade of the former Junior High School.  The school was inundated to the second floor.  The clock out front was stopped at 3.13,  twenty seven minutes after the earthquake. It was very moving.  Books scattered around. A class list with photos next to a map of the
evacuation route for disasters. There were pictures retrieved and rehung, trophies. Graduation was scheduled for the following day and the program was written on the blackboard. Students of the graduating class had come back to write on the blackboard - a tradition of Japanese students.

My classmates had taken the day off because they are up there for longer than me. I made a decision not to take photos of the students messages. I didn't know how many students there had survived or not... and I wanted to be respectful.   Talking to one of my classmates that evening,  I got a different perspective on it..."They wrote on the blackboard because they want people to read it"...   Very true.  They want their stories told -  they don't want to be forgotten.  There are some pictures here of the students' messages.  Kato san, one of the other volunteers who was up there, kindly shared some of his photos with me.  He took them on a previous trip when he was working in the same area.

It was a very small school and I am sure it won't be rebuilt. The students and teachers who would have gone there this academic year will have been merged into another school. I hope they are doing well.  In the elementary school next door there are messages of encouragement from across Japan hung in the gymnasium.  The new floor suggests that the tsunami made re-flooring a necessity.  The support is appreciated.  May it continue.

The JHS is no longer being used. The school gym is filled with salvaged
fishing gear.

The clock stopped at 3.13pm.  Twenty seven minutes after
the earthquake struck. The clock is above the height of
the tsunami and I assume that it is powered electrically.
If so, there must have been power after the earthquake.

Books

The corridor of the top floor

The high water line in the stairwell between the first and second floors.
(or ground and first if you count that way).

Pictures, drawn by students retrieved and rehung,
excellence plaques leaned against the walls under the mirrors.
(Kato san's photo)

The entrance.  There were still some shoes in the shoe boxes.
(Japanese students change to inside shoes for being in the
school buildings.) (Kato san's photo)

The Graduation program in the staffroom (Kato san's photo)

In Japan there is a tradition of graduating students covering the
blackboard with wishes, thanks etc messages.  These have been
written since the earthquake, presumably by some members of the graduating class coming back.
On the edge of the photo, but not captured fully is a message to three students
"Zettai ni wasurenai" - we will never forget you.....   Presumably the three didn't survive the
tsunami.  (Kato san's photo)

Messages of encouragement from Ichinoseki, from inland Iwate prefecture.

Rikuzen Takata (9) Work at Otomo

On Sunday our task was in Otomo,  Rikuzen Takata, a small settlement on the flat land away from the main town, at the land end of the Hirota Peninsula.  The tsunami apparently struck from both sides.   Our task was to dig an irrigation canal that  had filled in with soil, concrete and asphalt and other debris during the tsunami.

In soil like this the digging shouldn't be hard, but there was so much debris in it that it was actually difficult work - many slabs that easily weighed more than 10kg (not a heavy weight but more difficult to dig out when buried deep in clay soil.)  Removing the big chunks made it difficult to keep the channel the right width.

The field was near to two schools, an elementary school on
the left, a JHS on the right.

Plenty more to go.

An electric pole buried.  Another girl and I did most of the workd to
uncover this.  Unfortunately we had to knock off early (the rules
changed because it was hot...) and didn't get it fully uncovered
or removed.

smaller debris that had been collected by an earlier group 

Objects intact left neatly and respectfully by the roadside

Rikuzen Takata (8) working in Hirota

 Hirota - which I have marked on the map here - is still in Rikuzen Takata local govt. area but about 8 km away from the principle settlement. It seemed that places further from the town centre, had more clean up remaining to be done.

Buses of volunteers lined up - looking inland from the tsunami wall.

Much clearing of rubble still to be done

Piles of rubble. We  cleared some but not all of this

Still quite a lot of major debris - concrete blocks, electric poles,
timber and cars. The house will  presumably be razed.

The tsunami wall offered little protection

One of three electric poles that our group moved - ably co-ordinated by
my Spanish and American classmates.  The man whose land
it was was very appreciative to have them gone after so long.
We also re-set some stones that were memorials of ... not quite sure what...
but according to the man they were very old.  If my classmates have photos
I'll paste them later.

Looking better ne!  Admittedly this is the other side of the road
but we did a fair bit of pick work here as well.