Futaba, Fukushima Pref. – Standing on a vacant lot surrounded by winter-browned fields, her black skirt stirring in the wind, Haruna Kambayashi gestures to where her family once lived. Her grandmother’s old house, her parents’ refurbished residence and a small workshop had filled the site.
Today, only weeds, stacks of garden stones from the demolition and a tiny shrine honoring the land’s guardian deity remain.
“We renovated our parents’ house the year before the disaster, so my father didn’t want to tear it down,” says the 43-year-old. “But with the deadline for demolition subsidies approaching, we decided to go through with it in 2020. The earthquake had left many cracks, and fixing them would have meant major repairs.”
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.