Japan Earthquake: Ishikawa Prefecture Calls for More Volunteers to Help with Reconstruction

According to a VNA correspondent in Japan, Ishikawa Governor Hiroshi Hase has suddenly changed his mind and is calling for volunteers to come to Ishikawa to help with reconstruction efforts after the January 1 earthquake left thousands homeless.

A scene of devastation after an earthquake in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, January 2, 2024. Photo: Kyodo/VNA

Earlier, in the early days after the January 1 earthquake in the Noto Peninsula, Mr. Hase urged those intending to volunteer to refrain from going to the province because damaged roads made accessing the most affected areas a difficult task.

At one point in January, it took eight hours to reach some areas from Kanazawa, the prefectural capital, while volunteers had only a few hours of daylight to help clear the debris after the earthquake.

But now, with a string of national holidays underway, Ishikawa officials are hoping more volunteers can come to help. Mr. Hase admitted that the number of volunteers is not enough, while there are too many collapsed buildings.

Mr. Hase noted that the Golden Week holiday period was the period when the number of volunteers peaked after the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011 and the Kumamoto earthquake in April 2016.

The Ishikawa prefectural government has set up an online website for volunteers to register. Cities in the prefecture have also started their own recruitment drives.

To date, more than 70,900 volunteers have participated in cleanup and reconstruction support activities in Ishikawa Prefecture. However, this figure is still much lower than the figures compiled by the Hyogo and Kumamoto prefectural governments three months after the natural disasters there in 1995 and 2016. About 1.17 million volunteers gathered in Hyogo after the Great Hanshin Earthquake, which killed more than 6,000 people, while about 101,000 volunteers went to Kumamoto in 2016.

In addition to the online site, the Ishikawa prefectural government has taken steps to make it easier for volunteers. One is setting up a tent in the town of Anamizu that can provide temporary accommodation for 100 volunteers. A range of organizations are also helping the Ishikawa prefectural government identify areas with specific volunteer needs.

According to VNA/Tin Tuc Newspaper

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