Ishikawa Prefecture Reports 10 Solitary Deaths in Temporary Housing Built after Noto Peninsula Earthquake

By Katsuhiko Takeyama / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

11:03 JST, June 29, 2025

KANAZAWA — At least 10 people living in temporary housing built in Ishikawa Prefecture after the Noto Peninsula Earthquake in January 2024 and floods triggered by torrential rain later that year have died alone without anybody noticing, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.

Local authorities are stepping up efforts to keep an eye on people living alone and elderly people residing in the temporary accommodation, such as by installing an alert system in the units to notify government officials in the event of an emergency.

However, experts warn that the sudden change in living conditions can leave disaster victims feeling lonely, so encouraging them to engage in social activities will also be necessary.

In January, a woman in her 80s who lived alone was found dead in a temporary housing unit in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture.

The woman previously made a living through running a business in her shop, which she rented to a volunteer group to help in the recovery efforts of the area. She reportedly lost contact with those around her after she went to see a doctor.

“She was a resilient person. I wonder if there was anything I could’ve done to help her,” said an acquaintance of her.

According to the Ishikawa prefectural police, as of May, four men and six women aged from their 40s to their 80s died of illness in their temporary housing units without anybody noticing. Six people were found within 24 hours of the day they were believed to have died, three were found within four to seven days and one was found within two to three days.

A total of 6,816 households consisting of 13,975 people were living in temporary accommodation units in the prefecture as of June 20.

In a bid to prevent these residents from dying solitary deaths, the Wajima city government has installed motion-detecting sensors that notify a 24-hour call center if no movement is detected over a certain period. Prefectural police officers regularly patrol temporary housing clusters and contact relevant authorities if they determine that a resident requires additional government support.

Members of the Japan Overseas Cooperative Association conduct activities such as visiting homes in areas near Wajima and Noto.

However, preventing people from dying alone is not easy.

“In some cases, men living by themselves have refused to let us visit them,” said Nobuyuki Kurita, head of Rescue Stock Yard, a nonprofit organization promoting monitoring activities in Anamizu in the prefecture. “We have to go to their homes several times to gain their understanding.”

Public housing for disaster victims will be developed in Ishikawa Prefecture in the future, but there are concerns that the solid housing could not stop increasing solitary deaths. In Kumamoto Prefecture, 33 people had died in temporary housing and public housing built after the devastating 2016 earthquakes, as of the end of March 2022.

Otemon Gakuin University Prof. Masato Tanaka, an expert on disaster reconstruction and solitary deaths in disaster-hit areas, said the risk of isolation increases when people experience changes in their environment, such as moving into temporary housing or public disaster housing, or when they lose their jobs.

“There are instances of even young people dying alone without anybody noticing,” Tanaka said. “There are limits to what monitoring activities and events that encourage social interaction can achieve. It’s important that these people are provided with mental health care as well as employment support and other assistance.”