Six Months On: The State of Recovery on the Noto Peninsula

A magnitude-7.6 earthquake hit the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture at 4:10 pm on New Year’s Day, 2024. The temblor triggered tsunami along the Japan Sea coast, with waves reaching more than 120 centimeters at Wajima, 90 centimeters at Kanazawa, 80 centimeters in the prefectures of Yamagata and Toyama, and 40 centimeters in Niigata Prefecture.

The disaster resulted in 281 deaths, the third-largest number of fatalities due to an earthquake since the beginning of the Heisei period in 1989. A total of 83,980 houses were damages and some 34,000 residents were forced to evacuate their homes. As of June 27, the number of evacuees stood at 2,228. Water had been restored in most communities by the end of May, but taps remain dry in some remote locations, including mountainous areas where there remains a risk of landslides.

Construction of temporary housing is ongoing. The Ishikawa prefectural government aims to complete 6,800 units for which it has received applications from municipalities by the end of August. Around 17,000 people have moved into new accommodations, including what is known as minashi housing, in which existing rental properties are rented by local authorities

Municipalities have made little progress in demolishing damaged houses, with work having started on 2,601 building, or 12% of the 20,865 applications received.

Disaster and Recovery Statistics

Fatalities: 281 (including disaster-related deaths)

Damaged homes: 83,980

Evacuees residing in shelters: 2,288 (34,000 at peak)

Evacuees in temporary housing units: 3,591 households, 8,481 people; minashi housing: 779 households, 8,871 people

Demolition of damaged residences: applications 20,865; work started 2,601; completed 911

Created by Nippon.com based on figures published by Ishikawa Prefecture, as of June 27, 2024.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo: Damaged houses still standing in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture. Drone photograph taken on June 28, 2024. © Kyōdō.)