The Ukedo Elementary School is a symbol of the local community.

It was a restricted residential area for 6 years in the Ukedo district and has been maintained as remains of the earthquake and opened to the public to create opportunities to think about disaster prevention and hand it down to future generations.

I would like to talk about my thoughts on this school and its future role.

 

 “There is no correct answer” What we can learn from the actual situation. 

Ukedo Elementary School is located in the coastal district of Namie town, leaving the school as it was at the time of the earthquake and tsunami. I hope that people of various backgrounds and ages will visit the school and think about what they can do from their own perspectives.

Some people who have never actually experienced such a disaster may be optimistic and think, “No way, it will not happen to my place. However, I realize that there are many things that can destroy assumptions.

As the years pass by 1 year, 5 years, 10 years after the disaster, and more recently, it seems that this disaster is gradually becoming more and more distant outside of the affected areas. However, disasters can always happen close to us. Nature can sometimes be a threat to human beings. We should never forget this.

The students and teachers at that point in time escaped to the mountains 800 to 1,000 meters away from the elementary school. They escaped for their lives with fear. I would like people to feel these things firsthand, not through words, but through space, and to think about what if you were a student at that time.

I hope that those who come to the school will not end their visit with the feeling of “It was tragic,” or “I feel sorry for them,” but instead will gain new insights.

Challenges for the future: Incorporate practical disaster prevention

The challenge for the future should be to incorporate practical disaster prevention as content in order to assume more realistic situations.

In the near future, the earthquake directly beneath the capital and the Nankai megathrust earthquake are expected to occur. It is important that education and training on disaster prevention not become a mere shell of reality in case of an emergency.

For example, what will you do if your cell phone is disconnected during an emergency and you are unable to contact your family? What will you do if your children are outside of school, such as on their way home from school or when they are alone? Family and teachers may not always be in the same place.

It also depends on the time of day and the season such as morning or night, summer or winter. We hope that everyone who visits the school will feel many things and think about how they can make use of the learnings in their own community after the visit.

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Ms. Hiromi Tamagawa

She is from Namie Town and is currently a town official. Her mother was a teacher at the time of the earthquake at Ukedo Elementary School (hereafter, Kakedo Elementary School).
She was involved in the maintenance works and operations of the school as remains of the earthquake.