Hot Spring Facility Reopens 3 Months after Noto Quake

   Nanao, Ishikawa Pref., March 26 (Jiji Press)--A hot spring bath facility in a central Japan city hit hard by the Jan. 1 massive earthquake reopened on Tuesday, nearly three months after the disaster, bringing comfort to local residents.
   The "Wakura Onsen Soyu" public bath facility in the Wakura Onsen spa resort area in the city of Nanao, Ishikawa Prefecture, had been closed due to damage from the 7.6-magnitude quake, which mainly struck the Noto Peninsula in the prefecture.
   It is the first hot spring facility in Wakura Onsen to resume services, although its operating hours are being reduced. Hotels in the hot spring resort area have been unable to restart operations because of problems brought on by the disaster.
   Wakura Onsen has a history of about 1,200 years. Wakura Onsen Soyu opened in 1899 and was renovated in 2011. It has a sauna as well as open-air and foot baths.
   The earthquake, which measured up to the maximum level of 7 on Japan's seismic intensity scale, damaged pipes at the public bath facility. Pumping up hot spring water became possible again about two weeks after the quake struck. But water supply disruptions caused by the disaster continued, making it difficult to adjust the hot spring water temperature. The water outage was resolved on March 16, enabling the facility to reopen.

(2024/03/26-13:59)

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