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The Yomiuri Shimbun Shin Nakayama stands on the beach where the river that probably swept his sister Miki away meets the sea in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Thursday.
By Katsuhiko Takeyama and Tsubasa Narishima / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers
17:07 JST, October 21, 2024
Miki Nakayama from Wajima’s Machino district is the only victim who has not been found among the 14 people killed in the record-breaking rain that hit the northern part of the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture. The search for her continues.
A month has passed since the heavy rainfall, and her 28-year-old brother Shin keeps searching for her on mountain roads and along a river.
“I really miss her. That’s all I can say,” Shin said. “I have been completely out of it since that day. Where did she go?”
Miki’s birthday was on Thursday and she would have turned 32. Shin visited a riverside where dirt piled up and searched for clues on the day.
Their house in Wajima was destroyed in the Jan. 1 earthquake and their family of six, including their father, moved into temporary housing.
“I’m heading out!” Miki said to Shin on the morning of Sept. 21 as usual and drove in a small passenger car to the town of Anamizu where she had a cleaning staff job. The rain suddenly became heavier, and an emergency warning was issued later that day. Shin called her many times but could not get through.
Miki’s car was found on a mountain road in Noto in the prefecture. Footage from a dashboard camera showed Miki slipping and being swept away as she got out of her car. It is believed that she was on her way home after leaving work in the middle of the day due to the heavy rain.
Shin has always been with his sister since they were children. The Machino district has mountains and sea; nature was their playground. They used to go to a nearby river and get soaking wet. Even as adults, they did not leave their hometown and would drive together to see movies every month. Miki’s dish of miso soup with lots of vegetables was delicious.
They sometimes clashed over trivial matters. Shin once handed Miki an egg after she commented that she wanted to eat rice topped with raw egg. She then said, “I wonder what to do,” and didn’t eat. Shin got angry, saying, “I just gave it to you. Do you want it or not?”
Such scenes of daily life are lovely memories now. After Shin reached adulthood, not a single month has gone by without her. Every day he looks back and wonders, “How did this happen?”
A police team of about 15 people searched for Miki on Monday starting at 8:30 a.m. and combed through driftwood and sand near Sosogi beach in Machino.
“She might have been swept out to sea. I am not only grateful but also sorry that they have searched so hard,” Shin said. But he also expressed his honest feelings. “I hope they can find even one clue.”
This year, he could not bring himself to prepare a birthday cake for his sister, which he has given her every year.
“I’m sure she’s hungry, and I want to let her eat plenty.” Shin continues to search for something, even if it is only a little, that will lead him to his sister.
