RIKUZENTAKATA, Iwate Prefecture--Demolition work finished July 31 on a towering gas station sign here that survived the 2011 tsunami disaster and was restored to show how high the water reached: 15.1 meters.
In the aftermath of the disaster, “Water height of tsunami 15.1 M” was added to the sign, along with arrows to convey the level and devastation triggered by the Great East Japan Earthquake. The sign was originally erected only to display the gas station’s name, “Okamoto Self Rikuzentakata.”
The self-service gas station, located 500 meters from the coast, was swept away by the tsunami and rebuilt in the same spot in 2012.
The operator decided to keep the damaged signboard to convey the scale of the disaster.
But with local development taking priority to elevate land for the construction of a national road, the gas station had to be relocated, along with the sign.
“Many of our customers felt scared when they looked up to the sign that showed how high the tsunami reached here,” said employee Sadao Kumagai, 70.
“We're sorry that the sign was removed, but we will erect it at our new premises to convey the message of the tsunami’s horror.”
The gas station operator had requested permission to move the sign in its entirety to the new premises, but was refused on grounds of a prefectural ordinance.
However, the operator has been given permission to mount just the display portion stating the gas station's name and tsunami information, not the massive metal supports, at the new site from early August.