Earthquakes and Nuclear Power: A Local Tour of Noto - Daily Life After the Noto Peninsula Earthquake, No. 98 (August 25, 2024)

For the second day, I decided to tour the entire Okunoto region.
The forecast for today was rain. Actually, it was also forecast to rain yesterday, but I was able to get around without encountering any rain at all.
However, today I definitely encountered rain.

Noto Town

Matsunami Elementary School

The first place I headed to was Matsunami Elementary School, about 10 minutes from my house.
The elementary school building suffered major damage in the earthquake, so the students are taking classes at the nearby Matsunami Junior High School. The temporary school building, which is almost finished, is also being built on the Matsunami Junior High School playground.

Wajima City

Shiroyone Senmaida (Thousand Rice Paddies)

Next, I went to Shiroyone Senmaida in Wajima City.
The Soto-ura road (National Route 249) is impassable due to landslides, so I decided to go through Anamizu in Noto Town and then through Mitsui in Wajima City.

Although it is only a portion, I was relieved to see some rice paddies where rice is being grown.
Roadside Station Senmaida was not open, but an elderly woman had a stall set up by herself. Some people were buying dried fish.

Nafune

From here, there was a temporary road leading toward Nafune, Wajima City (in the direction of Suzu City) that only construction vehicles and local residents could use.
Looking through the binoculars at Senmaida, it seems a new road is being built along the coastline.

Saying to ourselves, "We're locals too, right?", we proceeded a little bit. I wonder if that was not allowed.
It was Sunday and there was no construction work going on, so please forgive me.
The torii gate that stood in the sea at Nafune had also become a sad sight.

Wajima Morning Market Street

I made a U-turn at Nafune and headed to the Wajima Morning Market street. By the time I arrived at the morning market parking lot, it had started to rain.
A contractor's prefab building had been erected near the "Mare" commemorative monument, making it harder to see than when I came last time.

The entire morning market area was marked as "No Entry." This is likely because it would interfere with construction work.
However, since today was Sunday, no one was working.
I learned for the first time that "Dandara" is introduced on the street lamp poles of the morning market street. I hope they keep it even after the reconstruction.

The site below is the Dandara page I compiled.

Lunch is ramen at Genkiya

I had ramen at the ramen shop next to Takashoen. The ramen took a while to arrive, but it was delicious. It was pouring rain outside, so waiting wasn't painful.
A "heavy rain warning" had been issued for Wajima City.
It seems that the Monzen and Kuroshima areas, where we were planning to go next, were particularly dangerous.
No matter what, it's not a good idea to go down to "Kuroshima Fishing Port" while a warning is in effect.

Having decided that, we had no choice but to head first to our last planned destination,Shika Nuclear Power Plant instead. If things go well, it should clear up eventually.

Shika Town

Shika Nuclear Power Plant and the Solidarity Hut

As expected, the rain had completely stopped by the time we arrived at Shika Nuclear Power Plant. The change of plans was a great success.
Shika Nuclear Power Plant used to be called "Noto Nuclear Power Plant."
Before I knew it, the name had changed to "Shika Nuclear Power Plant."
When I was young, I participated in demonstrations and rallies against the construction of the nuclear power plant and to block the transport of nuclear fuel. The solidarity hut brings back memories too.
I wonder when the last time I came here was.
The solidarity hut wasn't locked, so I peeked inside.
Well, I'm one of the plaintiffs, so it should be fine.

A nostalgic manifesto from the Ishikawa Prefecture Teachers' Union Youth Division. It was filled with the names of acquaintances who have since retired.

Since we had come the furthest, we turned back.
The warning for the Monzen-machi Kuroshima area seemed to be okay, so we decided to head to Monzen via the Sotoura coast.

Wajima City

Ganmon

We also went down to "Ganmon," a scenic spot with strange rocks. I didn't feel much of the earthquake's impact here.

Naka-san would probably be interested in the terrain created by andesite eroded by the waves of the Sotoura coast. After all, he is a science teacher.
It's been a long time since I visited, but I don't recall if there was a "Ganmon Cave" accessible by car here. I don't remember well.

Kotogahama (Singing Sand and Columnar Joints)

We also stopped by Kotogahama.The singing sand beach, andesite columnar joints, and the intrusion into sedimentary rock. I hadn't scouted this place beforehand.
So, I was surprised when I went down!

The andesite outcrop has collapsed significantly, so you can no longer walk to the back of this cliff where you could go before.
However, thanks to that—perhaps?—the scale of the columnar joints visible is larger than before.

The photo below shows andesite that has become rounded due to wave erosion, alongside andesite that has just collapsed and fallen from the outcrop.
Although their surface appearances differ, I suppose these large rocks will also eventually be invited by the rough waves to become rounded as well.

Kuroshima Fishing Port

I also visited the port that has been reported in newspapers and elsewhere as having experienced the most uplift in this earthquake.
First, Kuroshima Fishing Port.
At Kuroshima Fishing Port, the area all the way to the edge of the breakwater has become land.

It feels strange that it is even standing here.
When I asked a resident, they said,
When the shaking from the earthquake subsided a little and I went outside, I could see the seabed of the port, so I thought this was a sign that a large tsunami was coming, but I found it strange that no tsunami came at all.
they said.

Kaiso Fishing Port

Since two men were sitting at Kaiso Fishing Port, I asked for permission to take photos.
I was also able to go down to the place that used to be the seabed.
There is even a ladder, so I wonder if this is for surveys or for curious tourists like us.

The men, who said they were living in temporary housing, said before we left, 'I'd better get going or people will worry,' and rode off on their bicycles.

I think the photo above is the place often seen in news reports. An uplift of over 4 meters.
This is the power of the Earth.

Dinner at Napoli.

Today's dinner was at Napoli in Matsunami, Noto Town.
The variety of items on the menu had decreased, but the food was still delicious.

After that, I returned home.
That night, I was able to have a thorough three-hour conversation with Naka-san.
It was a precious and luxurious time.

The next morning

The following day, since Naka-san expressed a wish to try taking the train home, I drove my car to Anamizu Station, the starting station of the Noto Railway, and said goodbye there.
Thank you for your hard work.