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March 26, 2025
 

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IWATE

Yoshihito Sasaki at Nijikko no Ie, a facility he set up in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, to provide a safe space for those suffering from severe social withdrawal
JAPAN / Society
Mar 14, 2025
Man's grief over wife and son leads to haven for social recluses
Yoshihito Sasaki sought to fulfill his late wife's wish of providing a safe space for those suffering from severe social withdrawal.
Bookshelves storing disaster-related documents at the Sendai City Archives in Sendai in February
JAPAN
Mar 12, 2025
Local governments struggle to preserve records of March 2011 disaster
Fourteen years later, securing storage space has become a growing obstacle as the volume of records continues to increase.
People observe a moment of silence at 2:46 p.m. on Tuesday in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, when the Great East Japan Earthquake hit 14 years ago. Behind them is a pine tree dubbed "the miracle tree" that survived the tsunami.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 11, 2025
Japan marks 14 years since 3/11 earthquake, with over 27,000 still displaced
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said he will pass down the lessons of the disaster to future generations.
A woman visits a grave in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, on Tuesday on the 14th anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake. Populations in the hardest hit prefectures of Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima are sharply falling.
JAPAN
Mar 11, 2025
Post-disaster Tohoku struggles with population decline
The number of people aged 20 to 39 in Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures fell by about 20% to 30% between 2010 and 2024.
Junko Yagi, a professor at Iwate Medical University, speaks during an interview on Jan. 10 in the town of Yahaba, Iwate Prefecture.
JAPAN
Mar 11, 2025
Experts urge ongoing mental health care for families in 3/11 disaster areas
"Parents and children alike are carrying heavy emotional burdens," one expert said.
The Ukedo Elementary School Ruins in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, in January. The Fukushima Prefectural Government offers training sessions for new prefectural government recruits to visit the school, the prefecture's sole preserved disaster-hit structure.
JAPAN
Mar 10, 2025
14 years on, prefectural governments work to pass on lessons to new hires
Many prefectural officials who were involved in front-line operations in the immediate aftermath of the massive earthquake and tsunami are retiring.
Firefighters head for the site of a massive wildfire in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, on Monday to determine whether the fire has been extinguished.
JAPAN
Mar 10, 2025
Iwate wildfire contained, evacuation orders fully lifted
There is no danger of the fire spreading further and firefighters will work to determine if it is has been extinguished, Ofunato Mayor Kiyoshi Fuchigami says.
The massive wildfire that broke out in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, on Feb. 26 has been contained, the city declared Sunday.
JAPAN
Mar 9, 2025
Massive Iwate wildfire, the nation's largest in half a century, is contained
The wildfire engulfed about 2,900 hectares — around half the size of Manhattan — making it Japan's largest in more than 50 years.
Personal items that were collected after the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011 are on display at a facility in the city of Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture.
JAPAN
Mar 9, 2025
Municipalities to end storage of personal items collected after 3/11
When asked what is needed to continue storing collected personal items, 16 municipalities cited the need for storage and display space, while 10 mentioned budget constraints.
Firefighters battle a wildfire in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, on Thursday.
JAPAN
Mar 7, 2025
Japan partially lifts wildfire evacuation orders
Wet weather, which began Wednesday following a record dry period, is helping firefighting efforts.
Firefighters battle a wildfire in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, on Thursday.
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2025
Wildfire slows in Iwate as government announces relief support
The city saw 26.5 millimeters of rain on Wednesday, far exceeding the 2.5mm total for the entire month of February.
Members of the media look out across the bay at smoke rising from a mountain in the rain as firefighters continue to battle a wildfire near the city of Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2025
Iwate wildfire enters second week as rain offers hope of relief
As of Wednesday morning, 4,111 people had been evacuated from Ofunato, or about 13% of the city’s entire population.
Ground Self-Defense Force helicopters return after dropping water as they fight a wildfire around Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, on Sunday. Firefighters were still battling Japan's biggest forest fire in half a century on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2025
Japan's worst wildfire in half a century spreads
White smoke billowed from a forested area around the city of Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, six days after the blaze began amid record low rainfall.
Firefighters work to extinguish the forest fire in the city of Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, in this screenshot of a video footage from the Fire and Disaster Management Agency on Friday.
JAPAN / Science & Health / EXPLAINER
Mar 3, 2025
Why the latest Iwate wildfire is so difficult to extinguish
The unusually dry weather, strong winds, the prefecture's mountainous terrain — as well as what's known as a fire cycle — have made the situation worse than usual.
Smoke is seen rising from the mountains of the city of Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, on Friday. Authorities said the wildfire kept spreading, burning 1,800 hectares by Sunday morning.
JAPAN
Mar 2, 2025
Thousands flee after Japan's biggest wildfire in decades
There were about 1,300 wildfires across Japan in 2023, concentrated in the February to April period when the air dries out and winds pick up.
Smoke rises from a forest fire in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, on Feb. 28
JAPAN
Mar 1, 2025
Japan battles biggest wildfire in decades
Flames are estimated to have spread over about 1,200 hectares in the forest of Ofunato in the northern region of Iwate since fire broke out on Wednesday.
A screenshot from a video posted by the Fire and Disaster Management Agency on X on Friday shows firefighters trying to put out the fire in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture.
JAPAN
Feb 28, 2025
Wildfire in Iwate rages on as unusually dry weather continues
The size of the affected area has doubled in less than two days.
A wildfire spreads in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, on Wednesday, prompting authorities to order more than 2,000 people to be evacuated.
JAPAN
Feb 27, 2025
At least one dead, 84 homes destroyed in Iwate Prefecture wildfire
This is the third wildfire in Iwate Prefecture in the past week, as dry weather continues.
A section of an exterior wall at the Okawa Elementary School Ruins in the city of Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, fell off last December.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 25, 2025
14 years later, fight to preserve ruins of 3/11 continues
Local governments hope to teach future generations about the destructive nature of the tsunami that followed the March 2011 quake, but the ruins are continuing to erode.
Ofunato in Iwate Prefecture. As the flames move dangerously close to residential neighborhoods, officials from the city issued evacuation orders late Thursday.
JAPAN
Feb 21, 2025
Wildfire rages in Iwate as firefighters struggle to contain blaze
No injuries or property damage from the wildfire have been reported so far.
Ozeki Onosato on doorstep of yokozuna promotion after latest title
Onosato celebrates after winning the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka on Sunday.
Japan's first foreign swordsmith opens workshop in Hiroshima Prefecture
Johan Leutwiler checks a sword he made at his workshop studio in the Kui district of Mihara, Hiroshima Prefecture.
Tokyo court strips Unification Church of religious corporation status
Nobuya Fukumoto (far left), a lawyer for the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, known as the Unification Church, is surrounded by the media at the Tokyo District Court on Tuesday after it ordered the group to be stripped of its religious corporation status.
Japan launches new Joint Operations Command to unify SDF branches
The head of the Self-Defense Forces' new Joint Operations Command, Gen. Kenichiro Nagumo, inspects an honor guard Monday morning at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo.
Applications for forgery-proof passports start in Japan
New Japanese passports will be printed using laser technology based on banknote printing techniques, making forgery more difficult.
Cherry blossom season kicks off in Tokyo after warm weekend
Blooms are seen on the Meteorological Agency's sample cherry tree at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Monday.
Japanese wages likely to rise more than 5% again this year
Wages are set for another big increase this year as annual negotiations secure generous agreements.
Stay at home if Mount Fuji erupts, government panel says
Mount Fuji in November. For the first time, the government has released specific guidelines on how residents should act in the event that Mount Fuji erupts.
In pictures: Tokyo's weeklong celebration of baseball's best
Shohei Ohtani belts a home run in the fifth inning of the second game of the Tokyo Series between the Dodgers and Cubs.
What's the fuss over Ishiba's gift vouchers?
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba waits for a session of the House of Councillors Budget Committee to begin in Tokyo on Friday.

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