Seven Years from Unprecedented Disaster

Seven years will have passed in March 11^th two weeks later. Although construction of public houses for the sufferers who lost their own houses will mostly be finished in next fiscal year, the schedule has been delayed for three years, forcing the residents uneasy ordinary life in temporary houses. In the area damaged by radiation emitted from broken First Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, a few of the students of elementary or mid schools have returned to their schools, causing disappointment of the people in their effort for reconstruction of their hometown.

 

Local governments are building “reconstruction public houses” for the sufferers who are unable to reconstruct their own houses. 63 cities, towns or villages in the prefecture of Iwate, Miyagi or Fukushima planned building of about 30 thousands of the houses. In FY 2018, 760 houses will be built in 6 cities or towns. All the construction of reconstruction public houses will then be finished, except 212 houses in Iwate and Fukushima.

 

Local governments in Iwate and Miyagi planned to finish building the houses by FY 2015. But they could not find the land for the houses soon, because a broad area had suffered from great tsunami and been useless. Some area had to accumulate a great amount of soil for creating hills to withstand next tsunami. Price hike of materials for the construction and scarcity of human resource also caused the delay.

 

While the reconstruction in Iwate and Miyagi is at least in progress, Fukushima is still left behind. Evacuation order of national government has been lifted in 9 towns or villages by last April, except towns of Okuma and Futaba where the broken nuclear power plant is located. But families with children hesitate to get back to their hometown, being afraid of negative effect of radiation on their kids. Although three towns and a village decided to resume the public schools in their homeland this April, only 4% of the students will go to the school from their own houses. Rest of them will commute from temporary houses out of the towns or a village.

 

It is crucial for suffered cities, towns or villages to keep young residents who will be responsible for rebuilding the community. High-level radiation from the plant consistently disturbs their effort. As time goes by, ordinary life of students has been rooted in the place where they are in evacuation. Public support for them is endlessly indispensable. It is fair to say that East Japan Great Earthquake has changed Japan forever.

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