The death toll from the Noto Peninsula earthquake has risen to 206. It has been revealed that eight of these deaths were disaster-related. ■ Footage capturing the "tsunami" from high ground "It really hurts, my heart" 41 people are missing in Wajima City. A large-scale search was carried out on Asaichi Street amid a heavy rain warning. Firefighters "Please call out to each other and take action" The death toll in Ishikawa Prefecture is 206, and the safety of 52 people is unknown. Suzu City, where a seismic intensity of 6+ was observed. Collapsed houses are still untouched. Immediately after the earthquake, many household goods that appear to have been swept away by the tsunami remain in the city that was hit by the tsunami. And a car was swept away by the tsunami, and is running up onto a rock. This is a video capturing the moment of the tsunami from high ground. The video was taken by Shigenori Funaki (68), who lives in the house. Funaki: "The outdoor unit, the outdoor unit, is buried. It came up that far. This is a river. It just kept going like this, so it all washed away." He says that his two cats were safe, but there are traces of the tsunami at the entrance. You can see that the tsunami came up to about knee height. When the earthquake first occurred, Funaki didn't think a tsunami would come. Funaki: "I didn't believe it at all. In my case, I got a phone call saying that a three-meter tsunami was coming, and for the first time I thought, no way. I was watching the ocean the whole time." Still, just in case, we evacuated to higher ground, and then the tsunami really came. Funaki: "(Q: You saw your house being swallowed up by the tsunami from above, right?) I agree. It really hurts, your heart. You can say, 'Ah,' but you can also give up. It can't be helped." Tsunami hits a newly built house: "We only lived there for less than ten days." Susu Shrine, at the very tip of the Noto Peninsula. Tsuji Hajime (68), head of the parishioners, tried to return home after the tsunami subsided, but... Tsuji: "I came home in water up to my knees." "(Q: It was scary, wasn't it?) I was scared. I didn't know what was below, and I always walk on this road, but when it was up to my knees, I couldn't see what was there at all, so it was hard to walk and scary." A car was swept away by the tsunami that crashed into a house. The Teraka district suffered devastating damage. Tsuji: "They're going to destroy (their houses). I've heard most people say, "They're going to destroy it! They're going to destroy it! Everyone, this person's house is going to be destroyed too!" "(Q: Do you know the people who live around here?) We're in an evacuation center. All my family is living in an evacuation center now." When the disaster first occurred, 100 people took refuge in the evacuation center in this area. Since the evacuation center wasn't enough, they also stayed in nearby greenhouses. Fortunately, there were no casualties in the Teraka district. The tsunami hit the house that Tsuji's daughter and son-in-law had just built. Tsuji: "They built the house and were vacated on the 10th of December. After they moved, they actually only lived there for less than 10 days. About a week." Tsuji's daughter and son-in-law are a family of three, including her husband, a carpenter, and their one-and-a-half-year-old child. The new house had been built by her son-in-law, who is also a carpenter, in December. After the tsunami, what happened to their daughter and son-in-law? Tsuji: "They wanted to come here, so this is something they really needed. It was really sad to see them crying as they searched for it." The daughter and son-in-law had been living in the center of Suzu City, but at Tsuji's urging, they set up a new home on this land and were hoping to live a happy life there. Mr. Tsuji: "(Q. Did your daughter and her husband say anything?) I don't know what to say. All they can say is do your best. I can't ask about the details. I can't ask about the insurance or what to do next. All I can say is do your best. My daughter and her husband have given up, but what should I do? It's my responsibility. I told them to come here." His pregnant daughter is currently in her final month of pregnancy and is hospitalized in a hospital in Kanazawa City. Mr. Tsuji: "If I give birth there, I won't have a home to go back to. I can't even get into my parents' house. Where should I go back to? I can't take her to an evacuation site, it's a nuisance to other people, and if our little one cries to their parents or has to change their diapers, it's a nuisance to everyone. I'm really worried about what I should do now." ■ Life without privacy... Children's "certain initiative" is healing At Shoin Elementary School in Suzu City, more than 200 people, mostly elderly people, are currently living in evacuation shelters. After 10 days without any privacy, my mental health is at its limit. "Personally, I think the most stressful time is when I'm asleep. The lights are turned off at 9:30 p.m., and if I'm out and about after that, I feel like I want to get some sleep. There are old men and women who talk in their sleep in the middle of the night, and at first we used to laugh at them, but now we're like, 'They're just silly.'" In the midst of all this, a certain initiative by children has become a source of comfort. A "wall newspaper" made by elementary and junior high school students staying in evacuation shelters. It contains illustrations of survey results on popular dishes served at soup kitchens and exercises to prevent economy class syndrome. Ataka said, "During the broadcast, the children would say things like, 'Good morning,' and 'Today's dinner is this or that.' Everyone would smile and it made me feel really warm inside." ■Attention on 'one type of support' 'From Nagasaki 25 hours after the disaster' As various forms of support continue to be sent to the disaster-stricken areas, a picture of 'one type of support' posted on social media has attracted attention. Social media post: 'Introducing overwhelming gratitude. Can you make it from Nagasaki to Noto in Ishikawa 25 hours after the disaster?' The footage was taken in Monzencho, Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture on the 2nd, the day after the earthquake. The video shows 'a vehicle with Nagasaki license plates providing support.' A man who was affected in Monzen-machi said, "First of all, I was surprised at the speed and the fact that they came here. Firefighters, rescuers, ambulances, all headed towards Wajima (the city). It felt like they were just passing right by. I felt a sense of security knowing that they were doctors, and when they arrived, they left some supplies for us. Water, some food, etc. We were really grateful." The disaster medical dispatch team, which was independently formed by Izumikawa Hospital in Nagasaki, left their hometown two and a half hours after the earthquake. From the next day, they provided support in Monzen-machi, about 20 kilometers from the city center of Wajima, for three days. The doctor who led the team and provided support said the following. Izumikawa Hospital Director Takuya Izumikawa: "The roads were pretty damaged, so we were aiming to go into the city but couldn't reach it. We arrived at Monzenmachi around 1pm on the 2nd. We have been providing medical care since then. We split the team in half, one to go around the evacuation centres and the other to find the victims." In addition to providing medical care at the evacuation centres, the hospital director and others also used the equipment they brought with them to search for missing people in the collapsed buildings. Director Izumikawa: "We've set the operation time to 72 hours after the disaster or 48 hours after arriving at the scene. There are very few medical support teams that are the first to arrive. We'll try to get there somehow and provide support." Ishikawa Prefecture: 206 dead... 8 of them "disaster-related deaths" As the search for missing people continues day after day, the death toll in Ishikawa Prefecture has reached 206. Of these, 8 have been determined to be "disaster-related". On the night of the 10th, an 86-year-old man was found in a state of cardiac arrest at an evacuation center in Noto Town. He was rushed to the hospital afterwards, but was confirmed dead. This evacuation life has no end in sight. Anxiety is growing as to how long it will continue. (From "Good! Morning" broadcast on January 11, 2024) [TV Asahi News] https://news.tv-asahi.co.jp