Japan's Noto Gangjin bereaved family sues for compensation against the state... “Neglect of earthquake-resistant regulations”

A bereaved family who lost a family member in the collapse of the building next door filed a lawsuit for damages against the government and the building owner, claiming that they suffered man-made damage due to the government's poor earthquake resistance regulations.

According to the Asahi Shimbun on the 6th, Mr. A (58), who lost his wife (48 years old at the time) and eldest daughter (19 years old at the time) in the earthquake, submitted a complaint to the Tokyo District Court the day before, requesting a total of 215 million yen (approximately 1.85 billion won) in damages against the government and the building owner.

At the time of the strong earthquake, a 7-story reinforced concrete building in the center of Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture collapsed and hit the adjacent residence and store of Mr. A.

As a result of an investigation by an expert committee from Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, it was analyzed that the upper part of the foundation pile driven into the ground was damaged by earthquake shaking, which also affected the soft ground, causing the building to collapse.

This is the first case in Japan where a building with foundation piles collapsed due to an earthquake.

The building, which was completed in 1975, was found to have structural defects, such as the rebar connecting the top of the pile and the foundation of the building not being connected. However, the seismic design standards for foundation piles became mandatory only in 2001.

Mr. A's side pointed out that even though the government identified the vulnerability of old piles after the Great Hanshin Earthquake in 1995, the mandatory seismic diagnosis was limited to large facilities larger than 5,000 m2, so the buildings in question were excluded from regulations.

At the same time, he said, “If appropriate standards had been established, the building would not have collapsed,” and claimed that the state was responsible for “unlawful omission” in failing to take necessary measures.

Mr. A said at a press conference, "No one can stop an earthquake, but only humans can keep buildings from collapsing. I hope no one else goes through the same thing as me."