Suit Filed to Halt Demolition of Tsunami-Hit Building in Japan

August 17, 2018

Morioka, Iwate Pref.- A citizens group in Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, filed a suit Friday seeking to stop the demolition of a former town office building ravaged by the March 2011 tsunami.

The suit was filed with Morioka District Court against Otsuchi Mayor Kozo Hirano by the group seeking to preserve the building, where many town officials were killed in the tsunami.

Hirano, elected in 2015, reversed his predecessor's decision to preserve part of the building. Demolition work has been suspended due to flawed procedures.

The plaintiffs criticized the mayor for pushing to demolish the building though it has high social and economic value as a remnant of the disaster.

"It's time for residents to rethink what to do to convey the importance of people's lives," Eigo Takahashi, head of the citizens group, told reporters. Jiji Press