Iwate Wildfire Rages for 6 Days; 311 Quake Survivors Battle Another Natural Disaster
A wildfire in Otsuchi, Iwate Prefecture, Japan, has been burning for six days, consuming over 1,600 hectares. Local volunteer firefighter Ryota Haga, a survivor of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, expresses exhaustion but determination to protect his hometown from this new major natural disaster. Concerns are rising over increasing large-scale wildfires due to climate change and firefighting manpower shortages from an aging population.
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- 📰 Published: April 27, 2026 at 22:51
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Central News Agency
(Central News Agency Otsuchi, Japan 27th Comprehensive Foreign Report) A wildfire in Otsuchi, a coastal town in Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, has been burning for six days, having incinerated over 1,600 hectares of forest land as of this morning. Ryota Haga, a local volunteer firefighter, who experienced the impact of the 311 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami 15 years ago, is now battling another major natural disaster.
According to Reuters, Haga, who was a high school student when the largest recorded earthquake in Japan and a deadly tsunami struck on March 11, 2011, had his home in Otsuchi swept away by the tsunami. Now 31, married with a young child, he once again faces the threat of a natural disaster to his hometown.
Haga, interviewed yesterday after another exhausting day of firefighting, said: "It has been 15 years since the Great East Japan Earthquake, and our lives have just begun to stabilize. We cannot let everyone lose precious things again."
Otsuchi was one of the coastal towns most severely affected by the 311 Great East Japan Earthquake; the peaceful fishing town was hit by a tsunami estimated at 10 meters high, killing nearly 1,300 residents, including the mayor, which accounted for about one-tenth of the town's population.
Haga stated that the wildfire is still spreading, "Our exhaustion has reached its limit. But this is our hometown, and no matter the cost, we will protect it, even if we feel we are running out of strength."
Haga noted that he has never experienced a wildfire of such magnitude. As of now, Japan has deployed about 1,400 firefighters and dozens of Self-Defense Force personnel for disaster relief, but there are no signs of the fire being under control, even with scattered rain forecast for today.
In the past, large-scale wildfires were relatively rare in Japan compared to other parts of the world; however, climate change has led to an increase in their frequency, especially in early spring before the rainy season, when hot, dry conditions and fire-spreading winds occur. Another wildfire also broke out yesterday in Fukushima Prefecture, also in northeastern Japan.
For Haga, the increasing frequency of wildfires adds to the long-term concern about the severe shortage of firefighting personnel in Japan due to depopulation and aging. He stated that his fire department currently has fewer personnel than the official establishment level. (Translator: Zhang Zhengqian) 1150427
(Central News Agency Otsuchi, Japan 27th Comprehensive Foreign Report) A wildfire in Otsuchi, a coastal town in Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, has been burning for six days, having incinerated over 1,600 hectares of forest land as of this morning. Ryota Haga, a local volunteer firefighter, who experienced the impact of the 311 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami 15 years ago, is now battling another major natural disaster.
According to Reuters, Haga, who was a high school student when the largest recorded earthquake in Japan and a deadly tsunami struck on March 11, 2011, had his home in Otsuchi swept away by the tsunami. Now 31, married with a young child, he once again faces the threat of a natural disaster to his hometown.
Haga, interviewed yesterday after another exhausting day of firefighting, said: "It has been 15 years since the Great East Japan Earthquake, and our lives have just begun to stabilize. We cannot let everyone lose precious things again."
Otsuchi was one of the coastal towns most severely affected by the 311 Great East Japan Earthquake; the peaceful fishing town was hit by a tsunami estimated at 10 meters high, killing nearly 1,300 residents, including the mayor, which accounted for about one-tenth of the town's population.
Haga stated that the wildfire is still spreading, "Our exhaustion has reached its limit. But this is our hometown, and no matter the cost, we will protect it, even if we feel we are running out of strength."
Haga noted that he has never experienced a wildfire of such magnitude. As of now, Japan has deployed about 1,400 firefighters and dozens of Self-Defense Force personnel for disaster relief, but there are no signs of the fire being under control, even with scattered rain forecast for today.
In the past, large-scale wildfires were relatively rare in Japan compared to other parts of the world; however, climate change has led to an increase in their frequency, especially in early spring before the rainy season, when hot, dry conditions and fire-spreading winds occur. Another wildfire also broke out yesterday in Fukushima Prefecture, also in northeastern Japan.
For Haga, the increasing frequency of wildfires adds to the long-term concern about the severe shortage of firefighting personnel in Japan due to depopulation and aging. He stated that his fire department currently has fewer personnel than the official establishment level. (Translator: Zhang Zhengqian) 1150427