OFUNATO, Iwate Prefecture--Hundreds of people lined the pier of this quake-hit community on Sept. 10 to welcome the No. 8 Ohama Maru, a new fishing boat bought to replace vessels lost in the March 11 disaster.
OFUNATO, Iwate Prefecture--Hundreds of people lined the pier of this quake-hit community on Sept. 10 to welcome the No. 8 Ohama Maru, a new fishing boat bought to replace vessels lost in the March 11 disaster.
Three branch offices of the Ofunato fishing cooperative were destroyed by the tsunami, ships used for fixed net fishing were overturned and swept away, and the local shipbuilding yard was also damaged.
Using subsidies from the central, prefectural and municipal governments, the cooperative commissioned a company in Yamaguchi Prefecture in western Japan to construct the new 19-ton vessel.
Yoichi Iwawaki, the head of the fishing cooperative, said the number 8 was included in the ship's name because the purchase of the ship represented the first step of the rebuilding process. The number is considered lucky in Japan.
The ship will fish salmon, mackerel, amberjack and squid.