RIKUZENTAKATA, Iwate Prefecture--A memorial flame dubbed the "Light of Hope" arrived in this quake-hit city on Dec. 10.
RIKUZENTAKATA, Iwate Prefecture--A memorial flame dubbed the "Light of Hope" arrived in this quake-hit city on Dec. 10.
The flame was lit from the 1.17 Light of Hope monument in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, which commemorates that city’s suffering and rebirth following the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, and carried in a small lantern to Rikuzentakata.
Disaster victims, representatives from Kobe and quake volunteers gathered for the lighting of the new monument on high ground overlooking the sea.
The 1.17 Light of Hope monument was unveiled in a park in Kobe's Chuo Ward on Jan. 17, 2000, to symbolize the reconstruction of the city.
The idea for the new monument came after families of Great Hanshin Earthquake victims began sending relief supplies to March 11 survivors in Rikuzentakata.