14 Years After 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, Remains of 6-Year-Old Girl Missing in Tsunami Found

By Kisho Tokuyama and Fumiya Oshio / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers

14:23 JST, October 11, 2025

The partial remains of a 6-year-old girl who had been missing since the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake have been identified, police said Thursday.

The girl was swept away in Iwate Prefecture by the tsunami that followed the earthquake, and her remains were found about 100 kilometers away in Miyagi Prefecture.

The Miyagi prefectural police said forensic analysis of a lower jaw found in Minamisanriku in the prefecture revealed that it belonged to Natsuse Yamane, who was from Yamada in Iwate Prefecture.

Natsuse’s family had been searching for her for 14 years and seven months. They expressed gratitude to those who found her.

According to the police announcement, construction workers who volunteered to clean the coastline in Minamisanriku and the adjacent city of Kesennuma discovered the remains in February 2023 among items collected and reported them to the police.

In cooperation with Tohoku University and other organizations, the police conducted mitochondrial DNA typing to identify the remains’ maternal lineage and analyzed trace proteins collected from the surface of the teeth. As a result, they were able to make an identification on Sept. 24.

Natsuse’s remains will soon be handed over to her parents.

The family issued a statement through the police upon receiving the identification report: “We are deeply grateful to the volunteers who cleaned the area, the people who discovered the remains among the collected items and the police officers who conducted the investigation. We were surprised to receive the news at a time when we had given up hope. We are very happy.”

Natsuse was at home with her grandmother when the tsunami struck on March 11, 2011. They tried to escape but became frightened when water approached the entrance. They got back inside, but Natsuse was swept away. Her grandmother miraculously survived.

Natsuse’s mother, Chiyumi, 49, attended a graduation ceremony for her nursery school held immediately after the disaster and received her daughter’s graduation certificate on her behalf.

Time passed, and Natsuse was not found. Chiyumi laid flowers at a 2024 memorial service, thinking of her daughter who would have turned 20 that year.

“She is still 6 years old in my heart,” she said.

Natsuse loved playing house and with blocks. She danced cheerfully at the nursery. Her favorite school meal was inarizushi, vinegared rice stuffed inside seasoned aburaage deep fried tofu pouches.

“Every time I saw her photo, I hoped she would be found soon,” said a female nursery teacher, 50, who knew Natsuse at the time. “I want to tell her, ‘I am so glad you could return to your mom and dad, Nacchan.’”

According to the National Police Agency, 2,519 people remain missing. It was the first time since 2023 that the identity of a missing person from the disaster was confirmed.