Extensive Damage Found in Temporarily Isolated District in Noto Region of Ishikawa Pref., Japan, After Record-Breaking Rainfall

By Katsuhiko Takeyama / The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:56 JST, September 24, 2024

WAJIMA, Ishikawa — The Machino district in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, which was isolated for three days after the Noto Peninsula Earthquake on New Year’s Day, was also temporarily isolated due to landslides caused by record-breaking rainfall.

After road access was restored on Monday morning, a reporter entered the community.

Machino has a population of about 1,800 and is 42 kilometers from the city center. The roads leading to the area were cut off one after another, and they were impassable from Saturday afternoon.

Once in the community, the main road was seen flooded everywhere, and large amounts of earth, sand and driftwood were scattered around. Slopes 10 meters high beside the road had collapsed, blocking half the road. The section had been reinforced with sandbags after it gave way during the earthquake on New Year’s Day. However, the sandbags could not support the section, and it crumpled again.

The electricity and water had been restored after the earthquake, but the heavy rainfall caused power outages again. The water supply has also been cut off. According to the local fire department, they recovered the bodies of two women who were caught in landslides at separate locations in the district.

At Motoya Super, a local supermarket near a river, muddy water had flowed into the store up to a height of 1.8 meters. A large amount of sediment and driftwood remained inside the store, and merchandise was scattered about.

The store’s ceiling collapsed during the New Year’s Day earthquake, but the supermarket continued to operate without a day off.

“This is the first time something like this has happened,” said Kazutomo Motoya, the 46-year-old manager of the store. “I’m also thinking about rebuilding this store here or not,” he said matter-of-factly.