Emperor, Empress Visit Noto Peninsula Again; Imperial Couple Concerned about Jan. 1 Quake Victims

The Yomiuri Shimbun

17:41 JST, April 12, 2024

The Emperor and Empress flew from Tokyo’s Haneda Airport to Ishikawa Prefecture on Friday to meet people affected by the Noto Peninsula Earthquake in January.

This is the second time the Imperial couple have visited the prefecture for the purpose, having previously done so on March 22.

Due to an engine fault found at Haneda Airport on the plane that had been set for their special flight, the Emperor and Empress changed to a reserve plane and arrived at Noto Airport in Wajima in the prefecture shortly before 11:30 a.m., an hour later than scheduled. They then followed the planned schedule to visit the towns of Anamizu and Noto, albeit nearly an hour late.

They are to return to Tokyo in the evening.

According to the Imperial Household Agency, the Emperor and Empress were worried about the situation in the Okunoto area, which is the northern part of the Noto Peninsula, and wished to visit parts of it other than Wajima and Suzu, which they had visited in March. The destinations for their trip this time were arranged by the agency and the Ishikawa prefectural government.