11 Months On, Noto Quake Survivors Struggling to Build Communities

   Wajima, Ishikawa Pref., Nov. 30 (Jiji Press)--Survivors of the powerful earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula in central Japan eleven months ago are struggling to build new communities, as many of them are elderly and must live among strangers in temporary housing.
   About 55 pct of temporary housing complexes in the cities of Wajima and Suzu in Ishikawa Prefecture, which were hit especially hard by the Jan. 1 temblor, lacked community leaders such as neighborhood association chiefs as of Friday. Specifically, 31 of the 46 complexes in Wajima did not have such figures, as was the case for 18 of the 42 complexes in Suzu.
   "It's difficult to find people willing (to take on the role) in large blocks comprising residents from multiple districts," a Wajima city official said.
   "Some people are rarely around, and everyone is busy with their own lives," said a 71-year-old woman living in the No. 2 complex of the Yamagishimachi district of Wajima. "I don't have anyone to talk to, and I think I'll be stuck inside home all the more when it gets cold."
   A 74-year-old woman living in a complex built in Wajima's Marine Town district said that without community managers, some people are not following rules.

(2024/11/30-16:04)