Japan New Year earthquake: Tokyo to spend additional $660 million in rebuilding affected areas

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Saturday (Feb 24) that his government would spend an additional $660 million (100 billion yen) rebuilding the areas that were ravaged by magnitude-7.5 earthquake on New Year’s Day (January 1), the news agency AFP reported. Addressing a press conference in Wajima which was the hardest-hit city, Prime Minister Kishida said, “The living conditions at temporary shelters are improving, but I will bear in mind that the reality remains tough as ever.”

Kishida said that this additional funding would be approved by his cabinet in the coming days. He added the funds were designed in part to finance a subsidy system that seeks to help young and child-rearing families rebuild their destroyed homes. 

The prime minister also said that efforts would be sped up to construct prefabricated temporary housing while vowing more support for Wajima’s traditional artefact industry.

The earthquake and its aftershocks devastated parts of the Ishikawa region. A total of 241 people had been killed and more than 10,000 people were displaced, taking refuge at shelters and hotels, and water still cut off in some parts of Ishikawa.

PM Kishida announced the additional funding as he visited the quake-hit areas to assess the situation. This is the third allocation of emergency funds to efforts to recover from the disaster, with the amount now expected to total over $1.7 billion. 

Last month, a government estimate showed that damage in Ishikawa and two neighbouring regions was likely to cost between $7.4 billion and $17.6 billion. This data was calculated using data from past major earthquakes.

Japan sits on the Pacific “Ring of Fire” and is regularly hit by quakes and has strict construction regulations intended to ensure buildings can withstand strong tremors.

However, many structures are older especially in rapidly ageing communities in rural areas like those hardest hit in the Jan 1 earthquake. 

(With inputs from agencies)