【Oku Noto Report (First Part)】Noto shaken by earthquake and torrential rain, preparations and confusion for a trip to explore the progress of reconstruction

At the beginning of the week heading to Noto, there was already a forecast of rain, so I was worried about the impact, but I was a little relieved to hear in the weather report on the morning of Friday, September 20, 2024, that the rain clouds were likely to leave sooner than expected. (Photo: ©Google Earth)

■ Torrential rain in Okunoto beyond the forecast

Meanwhile, on the morning of Saturday, September 21, images of heavy rain hitting Oku Noto, including Suzu City, Wajima City, and Noto Town in Oku Noto, came in. A special warning for heavy rain was issued for the entire Okunoto area, emergency announcements were repeatedly made asking people to take action to protect lives, and news programs were reporting on the ever-changing local situation.

Seeing this, I hurriedly changed my flight and rental car reservations online to the following week. However, the cancellation of the accommodation required direct contact by phone, which made me feel distressed. Since the situation of the following week could not be predicted, the inn was canceled for the time being.

After canceling my reservation for the Noto trip, I continued to pay close attention to the news coverage of Noto that day, but while watching the video, I realized my own helplessness in the disaster area.

■ Post of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida

On the X timeline, then-Prime Minister Fumio Kishida wrote, "I would like to pay tribute to Shohei Ohtani of the Dodgers for achieving the 50-50 milestone of 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases, and for further extending the record to achieving the feat of 51-51. The post flowed.

This post was posted at 10:27 a.m. on September 21. A warning had already been issued for Okunoto, and the damage was spreading. Ohtani reached 51-51 around 8:30 a.m. the day before, and Kishida's post was made a day later.

At that moment, the public felt uncomfortable with this post because they had witnessed the damage caused by the torrential rains in Okunoto and were expecting a quick response to the affected areas.

■ Can I go to Noto now?

Initially, I was preparing for a two-day interview with Okunoto from September 22, and I was worried about choosing a place to visit until the evening of Friday 20th. After the earthquake, the municipalities and supporters of Noto posted on the Internet and social media that in August, Ishikawa Prefecture introduced stores and facilities that had reopened under the theme of "Noto you can go now."

In particular, an increasing number of facilities reopened from summer to September. I wanted to visit a lot of places, but I couldn't do it in two days. I thought this was a happy scream.

When I was unsure about the timing of entering Noto, I was inspired by the JTB holding a support event called "Nanao Port Festival in Tokyo" at Zojoji Temple in Tokyo in late August, and the Ishikawa Prefecture newspaper Hokkoku Shimbun starting a series called "Noto You Can Go Now," and the editorial department of Yoyo Travel News decided to cover the event in September.

Because it is a travel news site, I wanted to write an article about "Noto where you can go now" such as stores and facilities that have reopened.

■Who created the cause of the stay away from visiting Noto?

The week after the heavy rain on the Noto Peninsula, I visited a travel event held at Tokyo Big Sight just before my departure from Noto and asked the people involved in the Ishikawa Prefecture booth about the current situation. One official said, "The reason why there are still few visitors is largely due to the fact that Governor Hiroshi Ishikawa immediately after the disaster said, 'Don't come.'"

The prefectural governor's remarks have created an atmosphere of refraining from visiting Noto after the earthquake, and have caused a current situation in which visitors have not recovered since then. It is clear from marketing theory that the path that leads to the growth period (more and more people) and the stable period (people are maintained) depends on the introductory period at the beginning of things.

Furthermore, what exacerbated this situation is the attitude of the major media. The media focused only on the areas that were severely damaged, and there was little coverage of the reopened stores or the state of life there.

This led to a widespread misconception that it was too early to visit Noto. Since spring, he has been so absorbed in topics such as the House of Representatives by-election, the Tokyo gubernatorial election, and the Paris Olympics that the situation in Noto has hardly been reported.

In addition, it is thought that the media reporters themselves did not have the experience of taking lodgings locally, did not conduct interviews at the inns, or did not update the information, and rumors that "it is difficult to get accommodations" persisted.

The reason for the delay in visiting Noto is Governor Hiroshi's remarks and the attitude of major media outlets. However, in the end, the fact that ordinary individuals do not want to know the current situation in Noto in depth may be contributing to this atmosphere. This time, I was keenly aware that I was one of them.

■ Noto that anyone can aim for

As a result, it was decided to enter Noto from Saturday, September 26th. The impact of last week's heavy rain is unknown, but I want to visit as many places as possible. The flight and rental car were rebooked on the 21st, and the same accommodation in Anamizu and Suzu was also rebooked after that.

There were rumors that it was difficult to make reservations and that the prices were soaring, but as a result of considering going to Noto in early September and inquiring with several inns, I heard that it was relatively easy to make a reservation because the supporters take vacation on weekends, although they are often full of reconstruction supporters on weekdays. We were able to confirm that the accommodation cost was the same as before the earthquake.

It is recommended to check directly with the hotel when making a reservation. Even if you can't make an appointment, there is information you can get over the phone.

The tourism infrastructure is weak due to the Noto Peninsula earthquake and the heavy rains in Oku-Noto, but it is still possible to visit by plane or rental car. Even if you can't book a rental car, you can still get a " Furusato Taxi You can smoothly access each municipality.

Although the arrangements for this visit to Noto require some coordination, it was much smoother than Golden Week and the year-end and New Year holidays, and it became clear that ordinary individuals could participate in "Noto that you can go now".