Japan marks 15 years since quake-tsunami, Fukushima nuclear crisis

TOKYO – Japan on March 11 marked 15 years since a devastating earthquake and tsunami struck the country’s north-eastern areas and triggered a nuclear crisis, with survivors expressing ongoing pain as they called for the memories and lessons from the catastrophe to be passed down to future generations.

The triple disasters of the 9-magnitude earthquake, the resulting tsunami and the meltdown of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex – the world’s worst nuclear accident since the 1986 Chernobyl crisis – led to the loss of more than 22,000 lives. The plant’s operator is still struggling to dismantle the damaged facilities by 2051.

People across the country observed a moment of silence at 2.46pm, the exact time the earthquake struck the region on March 11, 2011.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attended a memorial service hosted by Fukushima prefecture, offering her condolences and expressing hope for further efforts for recovery in the area, as well as in disaster prevention. The central government stopped hosting memorial services in Tokyo in 2022.

“We will do our utmost to resolve the many issues regarding reconstruction over the next five years for recovery of the affected areas,” Ms Takaichi said, noting that the “third stage of reconstruction and revitalisation” would start in April.

“We will never let the valuable lessons learnt at the cost of the many victims be forgotten and will endeavour to pass them on to the next generations,” she added.

From early morning, families of victims gathered at the ruins of Okawa Elementary School in Ishinomaki, Miyagi prefecture, where 84 pupils and teachers lost their lives in the tsunami.

“Passing down memories for decades to come will save lives by reducing the risk of disasters. It is my duty as a parent,” said Mr Takahiro Shito, 61, who is working to preserve the ageing school building as a monument to the tragedy.

His 11-year-old daughter, Chisato, was killed in the disaster.

Madam Mieko Kato, a 75-year-old woman from Sendai who lost her husband and two other family members, visited a cenotaph in Natori, Miyagi prefecture.

“I have never forgotten the disaster, but I must move forward. I hope the three of you will watch over me,” she prayed.

In Iwate prefecture’s Otsuchi, residents gathered at the memorial site Chinkon no Mori Aeru to offer flowers. The town lost around 1,300 people – nearly 10 per cent of its population – in the disaster.

“It’s been 15 years,” said a teary-eyed Mr Kazuo Hashimoto, 74, as he stroked the name of a missing friend engraved on the monument.

Sirens blared during an evacuation drill in Miyako, Iwate prefecture, that began at 6am.

“Fifteen years later, elementary and junior high school students have no memory of that day,” said university student and participant Ai Segawa, 22. “It’s important to pass on the experiences and lessons learnt.”

The latest figures from the National Police Agency put the direct death toll from the disasters at 15,901 people, while 2,519 people were still unaccounted for as at the end of February, mostly from Miyagi, Fukushima and Iwate prefectures.

But while the police and other groups have worked to search for and identify the remains of the victims, changes to the terrain and the passage of time have hindered efforts that were already complicated by damage to the bodies.

The remains of many victims who were found in distant locations could not be identified and some family members who had been searching for their loved ones have died.

Around 15 police officers combed the beach in Yamada, Iwate prefecture, with rakes in hand, searching for any clues about those who remain unaccounted for.

The search follows the discovery of bones in Minamisanriku, Miyagi prefecture, which were determined to be those of Natsuse Yamane, a six-year-old girl from Yamada, and returned to her family in October 2025.

Among the officers was 19-year-old Kohaku Kotaki, who said the news of Natsuse’s identification moved her, prompting her to stay committed to continued efforts.

Deaths related to the disasters, such as from illness or stress-induced suicide, stood at 3,810 as at Dec 31, 2025, according to the Reconstruction Agency.

Around 26,000 people also remained displaced from the region as at Feb 1, it said.

However, since evacuation orders were lifted for some municipalities in Fukushima prefecture, a record 3,799 people from 2,700 families have moved there, as the prefecture tries to boost its appeal despite a housing shortage.

Meanwhile, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings (TEPCO) has faced challenges in its efforts to decommission the crippled nuclear plant by 2051, pushing back plans for a full-scale retrieval of melted fuel debris from the early 2030s to fiscal 2037 or later.

TEPCO has retrieved small samples of fuel debris from the No. 2 reactor, totalling less than 1g. It plans to use a robot arm for its third retrieval on a trial basis this autumn.

It is estimated that 880 tonnes of debris remain in Nos. 1 to 3 reactors which suffered core meltdowns during the nuclear crisis.

The entire town of Futaba, home to the nuclear plant, was uninhabitable due to radiation contamination for more than 11 years. Much of the area is still off-limits today. KYODO NEWS