Iwate governor lauds progress in reconstruction, 11 years on from disaster

Morioka, Iwate Pref. – Iwate Governor Takuya Tasso has praised the progress in his prefecture’s recovery following the earthquake and tsunami or March 11, 2011.

“People no longer live in temporary housing, city centers have made a comeback, many facilities have been rebuilt and a ‘reconstruction road’ has been completed,” Tasso said, referring to a road running along the Pacific coast in the Sanriku area of the Tohoku region, which was built as a symbol of the area’s reconstruction.

“If we look back at the stricken state the disaster-hit areas were in, I’d say that we have achieved an astonishing recovery, though it took us 11 years,” Tasso said in an interview with the press.

He expressed his gratitude and respect for people who have helped Iwate Prefecture to get back on its feet.

Tasso said that his prefecture will promote the construction of infrastructure such as seawalls and flood gates. He also pointed to the need for support tailored to each person affected by the disaster, including in fields such as mental health care and community-building.

The governor said that poor fish catches and soaring fuel prices, in addition to the COVID-19 pandemic, have cast a shadow over Iwate Prefecture’s economy.

Measures to tackle weak consumption are necessary, and they will promote the prefecture’s further recovery and revitalization and help reverse its falling population, Tasso said.

On how the prefecture will pass lessons and memories of loss and damage from the disaster onto future generations, Tasso said, “As passing on the accounts and offering information are important as the time goes by, we’ll focus more on these things.”

He said that the Iwate Tsunami Memorial Museum in the city of Rikuzentakata has played a significant part in such efforts, with the museum having attracted around 470,000 visitors so far.

“We’ll base our activities of offering information on the facts about and the lessons learned from the disaster at the museum, in hopes of turning the Sanriku area into a place of disaster education,” Tasso said.

Looking back at last summer’s Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, Tasso said that the region was able to provide encouragement to the Games, which were held amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“As our main goal was to get people to know about our progress in reconstruction and show our gratitude, I think we were able to achieve it,” he said.