Over 60% of quake-affected Noto residents see little recovery: survey

Over 60 percent of those significantly impacted by a powerful earthquake in central Japan on Jan 1 feel little progress has been made toward recovery and construction, a Kyodo News survey showed Sunday.

The questionnaire, conducted among 155 residents of six hard-hit municipalities in Ishikawa Prefecture on the Noto Peninsula, underscores the slow pace of rebuilding and growing concerns about declining attention to affected areas as the first anniversary of the quake approaches.

Regarding the progress of recovery and reconstruction, 18 percent of respondents said it had "barely progressed," while 45 percent said it had "not progressed much." In contrast, 5 percent felt things were "progressing smoothly," and 32 percent said it had "somewhat progressed."

When asked about the challenges facing disaster-hit regions, allowing up to three responses, the most common answer was population decline at 57 percent, followed by housing issues at 38 percent and infrastructure restoration at 32 percent.

Many respondents said they felt that population decline, already an issue before the Jan 1 temblor, had accelerated since the quake, while others pointed to delays in repairing damaged roads and demolishing collapsed homes.

The magnitude-7.6 quake is believed to have killed 489 people across Ishikawa, Niigata and Toyama prefectures, causing widespread house collapses. In Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, a historical marketplace was devastated by fire.

A man in his 80s from Suzu, a city on the tip of the Noto Peninsula, expressed concerns over the financial burden of rebuilding his home despite his desire to do so.

Conversely, some residents pointed to the completion of temporary housing and the reopening of businesses as signs of recovery.

Even though the peninsula was also hit by heavy rainfall in September, 61 percent of respondents indicated that public interest in the disaster-hit areas had waned. Some noted a decrease in support from volunteers and municipalities outside affected areas.

The survey was conducted through face-to-face interviews and questionnaire forms from Dec 3 to Dec. 8, targeting residents of Anamizu, Nanao, Shika, Suzu, Wajima, and the town of Noto.

© KYODO