NIHONMATSU, Fukushima Prefecture--Emotions ran high at a graduation ceremony for junior high school students from Namie town as children recalled what they and their families have gone through since the 2011 nuclear disaster that forced them from their homes.
NIHONMATSU, Fukushima Prefecture--Emotions ran high at a graduation ceremony for junior high school students from Namie town as children recalled what they and their families have gone through since the 2011 nuclear disaster that forced them from their homes.
Namie, a picturesque town near the coast, is now a no-go area. Three junior high schools from the town amalgamated into one, and since August 2011 have been operating as Namie Junior High School from the premises of a shut-down elementary school in Nihonmatsu, about 50 kilometers away.
On March 13, 20 students bade farewell to their alma mater and paid tribute to their schooling. Some of the girls broke down as they sang the school song, whose lyrics speak of the "eternal" sound of waves from the Pacific Ocean.
Graduating student Yuki Ikezaki said his goal in future will be to work for the Namie town office. The administrations of evacuated towns and villages are typically still functioning, operating from locations outside the zone.
Yuki, 15, said: "I want to make a bright Namie, so I intend to keep studying."
In the audience were 29 current students. They pledged to the departing students: "We will uphold the Namie Junior High School's traditions."