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[U11-07] Damage caused by the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake and the Oku-Noto Heavy Rains, and responses to recovery and reconstruction efforts
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Keywords:Noto Peninsula Earthquake, Heavy rain, Flood, Disaster response, Disaster recovery, Reconstruction
[Background and summary of this report]: The 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquake caused significant damage to buildings, water supply and sewerage, roads, and other infrastructure facilities in the Noto region and surrounding areas due to large-amplitude seismic motion, tsunamis, slope collapses, ground deformation due to liquefaction, and fires, taking people's lives and making it difficult to maintain their livelihoods, dealing a severe blow to society. The collapse of houses and damage to roads greatly hindered rescue, evacuation, and recovery efforts, but in addition, in September of the same year, a major disaster occurred in the Oku-Noto region due to record-breaking heavy rains, during the disaster recovery. The Noto region is a region with many mountainous areas and a low ratio of habitable areas, far from large cities such as Kanazawa, and connected by several main roads. Many of the settlements scattered in the mountains and along the coast are isolated due to landslides caused by earthquakes and heavy rains. The population has been declining in recent years, the aging population is advancing, and the earthquake resistance rate of buildings is low in this region. Such was the region that the great earthquake and torrential rains struck. This report will report on this chain of disasters, primarily from the perspective of citizens' lives, and on the damage and disaster response, based on various publicly available information and on-site investigations by the author.
[Torrential rain disaster during earthquake recovery]: The heavy rains in September caused new human and material damage in various parts of Oku-Noto, which had already suffered various damages from the earthquake, due to river flooding and landslides on sloping land. Fallen trees and sediment from the collapse of forested mountainsides caused by the earthquake, along with debris from collapsed houses, were deposited in residential areas and farmland by the floods, making the road to recovery even more difficult. Just as people were finally beginning to see a direction for the recovery of their livelihoods, the disaster struck again, forcing them to restart.
[Responses of the government and local communities, and recovery and reconstruction]: In the big earthquake that occurred during the New Year, relief and recovery support was being provided by the national government, local governments, and various organizations, and roads were being opened and repaired, and collapsed houses were being demolished at public expense. Emergency dam construction to prevent debris flow caused by heavy rain was also being carried out, but some of them were damaged in the heavy rain in September. After the earthquake, the flood alert level was raised, but the area was damaged by the sudden rise in the water level of a fast-flowing river with a small drainage area. Many people were forced to live in long-term evacuation shelters during the coldest period because their homes, which were the base of their lives, were damaged by the big earthquake and the infrastructure for daily life was cut off. However, the environment of the evacuation shelters was not sufficient, and secondary evacuations to places far away from their residential areas and temporary 1.5 evacuations were also carried out. Many people who lost their homes in the earthquake had temporarily moved to temporary housing that had been built at a rapid pace, and the heavy rain disaster occurred while they were still living there, causing great psychological damage. In the Oku-Noto region, many homes have been lost in the recent series of major disasters, the environment necessary for daily life has not been restored, and many areas have no prospects for business, accelerating the decline in population. In this situation, while promoting the reconstruction of lives, each local government is also considering reconstruction plans aimed at creating attractive regions that are resilient to disasters and make use of the strengths of the region.
[Torrential rain disaster during earthquake recovery]: The heavy rains in September caused new human and material damage in various parts of Oku-Noto, which had already suffered various damages from the earthquake, due to river flooding and landslides on sloping land. Fallen trees and sediment from the collapse of forested mountainsides caused by the earthquake, along with debris from collapsed houses, were deposited in residential areas and farmland by the floods, making the road to recovery even more difficult. Just as people were finally beginning to see a direction for the recovery of their livelihoods, the disaster struck again, forcing them to restart.
[Responses of the government and local communities, and recovery and reconstruction]: In the big earthquake that occurred during the New Year, relief and recovery support was being provided by the national government, local governments, and various organizations, and roads were being opened and repaired, and collapsed houses were being demolished at public expense. Emergency dam construction to prevent debris flow caused by heavy rain was also being carried out, but some of them were damaged in the heavy rain in September. After the earthquake, the flood alert level was raised, but the area was damaged by the sudden rise in the water level of a fast-flowing river with a small drainage area. Many people were forced to live in long-term evacuation shelters during the coldest period because their homes, which were the base of their lives, were damaged by the big earthquake and the infrastructure for daily life was cut off. However, the environment of the evacuation shelters was not sufficient, and secondary evacuations to places far away from their residential areas and temporary 1.5 evacuations were also carried out. Many people who lost their homes in the earthquake had temporarily moved to temporary housing that had been built at a rapid pace, and the heavy rain disaster occurred while they were still living there, causing great psychological damage. In the Oku-Noto region, many homes have been lost in the recent series of major disasters, the environment necessary for daily life has not been restored, and many areas have no prospects for business, accelerating the decline in population. In this situation, while promoting the reconstruction of lives, each local government is also considering reconstruction plans aimed at creating attractive regions that are resilient to disasters and make use of the strengths of the region.