People Mourn Victims of Central Japan Mudslide 4 Years On

   Atami, Shizuoka Pref., July 3 (Jiji Press)--People mourned the 28 victims of the 2021 major mudslide that struck Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, in a memorial ceremony on Thursday, the fourth anniversary of the disaster.
   In the ceremony, held by the Atami government from 9 a.m. at an elementary school in the city's disaster-hit Izusan district, participants laid flowers for the victims.
   "We will do everything to achieve recovery and reconstruction as soon as possible," Atami Mayor Sakae Saito said at the ceremony. Shizuoka Governor Yasutomo Suzuki was also among the participants.
   At 10:28 a.m., the time when the first report of the mudslide came in four years ago, participants offered silent prayers for the victims as sirens blared around the city.
   "For the families left behind, the disaster seems like yesterday," Yoko Koiso, 75, who lost her daughter, then 44, said in tears. "Every day, I think about why she had to die."

(2025/07/03-15:21)