Elementary Schools in Quake-Hit Sapporo Resuming Classes

September 10, 2018

Sapporo- About 60 pct of public elementary schools in Sapporo, the capital of the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, resumed classes on Monday, after a deadly earthquake hit the prefecture on Thursday.

The 124 public elementary schools in the city decided to hold classes, albeit only before noon until Tuesday as they cannot provide lunch to the students yet.

At the entrance of Maruyama Elementary School in the morning, arriving students expressed their happiness of reuniting with each other, with some of them saying, "The earthquake was awful!" and others asking, "Are you all right?"

The school was able to resume classes after its teachers and officials promptly went out to check across the school district if there were any dangerous places created by the 6.7-magnitude quake along the commuting routes.

"I was worried that some students were still scared after the shake, but I'm relieved now to see them smiling after meeting with their friends," Takahiro Saito, principal of the school, said. "I want to take care of the children so that they can enjoy their time at school again."

Meanwhile, 77 public elementary schools remained closed on Monday, the education board of the city said.

With some schools being used as shelters for evacuees, it may take some time for all schools in Sapporo to return to normal operations, the board added. Jiji Press