Even in the Ushitsu district of Noto Town, Ishikawa Prefecture, where a magnitude 6 quake was observed, collapsed houses were seen in various places on the 1st. Many people crowded around the Noto Gymnasium in Sakiyama, a town located on a hill and serving as an evacuation center, with some people calling in tears and saying, “My house is destroyed.”
◆“I can’t contact my son who is far away.”
A house destroyed by an earthquake in Noto Town, Ishikawa Prefecture
Takeji Kyumoto (90), a former joiner whose house collapsed, took refuge at the town hall. A friend of his was visiting during the first earthquake, and the main shock hit him just after his friend left to “check on the house.” He was pinned by a falling roof, but was able to pull himself out.
Sitting in a chair with another friend in the evacuation area, she said, “I’m weak. What should I do? I left my cell phone at home, too. I can’t contact my son, who is far away.”
◆”There are many evacuees. We may not have enough water.”
Many other disaster victims had evacuated to the town hall, but large tremors struck intermittently, and earthquake early warning alarms on smartphones went off each time. At the nearby public Ushitsu General Hospital, inpatients were gathered on the fifth floor and evacuated. There were also several evacuees in the hospital lobby.
A disaster response headquarters has been set up at the town hall, but roads connecting other parts of the town have been cut off, and town employees who try to go to stockpiles or evacuation centers often have no choice but to return home. They are currently distributing stockpiled supplies to various locations while looking for ways to pass, but one staff member tweeted, “There are a lot of evacuees. Even if we take them out of the warehouse, the water might not last.”
At Ushitsu Public Hospital, dialysis patients were in crisis. The hospital is experiencing water outages and leaks, so it is “running out of water.” A staff member was frantically calling government offices and other locations, saying, “We’re dealing with the situation, but we don’t have any water.”
◆Tsunami eyewitness testimonies around Ushitsu Port
Vehicles and tires that appeared to have been washed away by the tsunami were scattered at Ushitsu Port in Noto Town. Although electricity has been restored in some areas of the town, the area around the port was out of power and there was no light. Kazuyuki Saka (65), who was evacuated to the town hall, had come to his house right next to the port to see if electricity had been restored.
Immediately after the earthquake, they tried to escape to higher ground on the other side of the port, but when they saw the tsunami coming up the river, they fled to higher ground on the other side. When I returned home about an hour and a half later, I found people gathered at the entrance, probably because the footwear they had kept in the back of the house had been washed away. There was also mud in the hallway. “I think the tsunami was about 60 centimeters high,” he said.
The house next door where I used to live collapsed. “The shaking was like nothing I’ve ever experienced before. We have to clean up, but first we need electricity back,” said Saka, as he brought food for his wife and daughter at the town hall. .
◆Ushitsu Elementary School Blankets and insulation mats…
About 240 people evacuated to Ushitsu Elementary School in Noto Town. The school had run out of blankets that had been stocked, and some residents came to the school asking for blankets but returned empty-handed. There is only enough diapers and milk for children that each family brings.
Evacuees spending the night watching TV in Noto Town, Ishikawa Prefecture
Many people spent their time sitting in chairs in the lunch room, but those who wanted to lie down did so on insulated mats in heated regular classrooms. However, we have already distributed the insulation mats. Eriko Nomaru (43), who lives nearby and is evacuating with her family of four, lived in Nishinomiya City, Hyogo Prefecture, and experienced the Great Hanshin Earthquake. “The shaking was worse than the first one. The second one (the one with the highest intensity) was the worst,” she said.
A 72-year-old woman who had evacuated with her husband and cat said, “We just ran away. We won’t know the damage until tomorrow.” Another 75-year-old woman said, “This is the first time I’ve seen something like this, and I couldn’t move. I can’t do it anymore.” I thought so,” he recalled.
Buildings in the Ugawa district of Noto Town suffered particularly heavy damage. In one corner of the center, several buildings had collapsed on top of each other, and many surrounding buildings were also leaning. According to local residents, the buildings that collapsed included vacant houses and a building that had previously housed a bookstore, and several people were trapped but were rescued safely.
A corner where many houses have collapsed on top of each other in Ugawa, Noto Town, Ishikawa Prefecture.
Meanwhile, at the town hall, Mayor Bonze Omori and other town officials were still checking on the situation at each evacuation center and formulating countermeasures even after the date changed on the 2nd. A town official said with a serious look on his face, “We don’t know which roads we can take. We want to get the items as soon as possible.”
2024-01-02 00:15:05
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