Prayer and solidarity a month after an earthquake hit Ishikawa
More than 14,000 people are still displaced struggling without running water in the cold of the West Coast winter. Local parishes are involved in helping, starting with a support centre that opened on 20 January in Kanazawa.
Ishikawa (AsiaNews) – Exactly one month has passed since a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck the Noto Peninsula, Ishikawa Prefecture, central Japan, killing 238 people and displacing more than 14,000 people, still sheltering in evacuation centres, local authorities report.
A minute of silence was held today at 4:10 pm, to mark the moment, a month ago, when the quake struck on New Year’s Day, while the Japanese Catholic Church held a prayer from 4 pm to 5 pm at the Holy Mother Kindergarten in the city of Nanao to remember the dead and the displaced.
The deadliest earthquake in the country in eight years completely or partially destroyed 44,000 homes, while some 40,000 homes have no running water, according to the Ishikawa municipal authorities.
Even now, it is hard to deliver fresh food to the area, and survivors are struggling against frost and unsanitary conditions.
In some parts of the Noto Peninsula, which remains isolated, water may not be restored for another two months, raising the risks for people cramped in evacuation centres; the authorities are in fact already reporting cases of respiratory infections and gastroenteritis.
The bitter cold also poses a challenge, especially for the scores of residents forced to sleep in their cars. The area was hit by heavy snowfall last week, and the authorities are warning of the risk of landslides.
According to public health experts, more than 900 people died after the devastating 1995 Kobe earthquake, from the flu and lack of medical care in evacuation centres. In Ishikawa Prefecture, the authorities today began vaccinating displaced people against the flu today.
In the Diocese of Nagoya, which has 27,000 members out of 12 million residents, the Caritas support centre in Noto Peninsula, the area most affected by the earthquake], set up an operational base on 20 January to coordinate efforts by the Catholic parish in Kanazawa.
The parishes in Wajima and Nanao, the two cities that suffered the most serious damage, come under this parish. Since local Catholics are few, with no resident priest, the parish priest in Kanazawa, Fr Yoshihiro Kataoka, 41, tried to reach them to assess the situation.
Wajima came out worse; fortunately, no fatalities were reported among local Catholics, but the church building suffered major damage and will have to be rebuilt.
The Seibo kindergarten in Nanao City has become the main site for Catholic relief. Although there is no running water, electricity and gas have been restored.
The "Jinnobi" eatery was established near the kindergarten. More than a soup kitchen, it is a place to “relax" in the local dialect, offering hot meals on weekends.
“We prepared eight ingredients and told everyone to come and enjoy the food, including their favourites," organisers explain. Many were grateful, saying, "I'm happy to finally eat hot food.”
Aid groups connected to parishes in the earthquake zone are also working together to help families in need in the cities of Nanao City, Anamizu Town, and Shiga Town.
“There are still some places where the government is unable to grasp the needs of the victims of the disaster, but we are doing what we can to support them,” reads one of the latest posts by the Caritas support centre on its blog.
To support these initiatives, the Catholic Church in Japan has started a fundraiser.
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02/01/2024 17:19
21/02/2024 12:12
