To reestablish new lives, with local inhabitants of Kitakami Area [PDF]

Kitakami area is located in the Northeast of Ishinomaki City in Miyagi Prefecture, and one of the biggest river in Tohoku region called Kitakami rivers runs though the mountain to the sea. In Edo era, Juusanhama-mura in Motoyoshi-ward merged with Hashiura, Nagao, Onagawa, and became Kitakami town. In 2005 another merger took place in Heisei era, and it became part of Ishinomaki city. Rich nutrients are carried from mountains through Kitakami river, and fast currents in the ocean have produced high quality seafood in the area. Before East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, approximately 3,900 people (1,100 families) lived in this area, but the disaster has caused wide spread damage including 185 deaths, 80 missing people, and people’s livelihoods have been severely affected.