Two months after the Kumamoto earthquake, recovery is progressing, but concerns remain over well water issues

On the 28th, two months have passed since the Kumamoto Earthquake, which had a maximum seismic intensity of 7 in Kumamoto Prefecture and claimed 38 lives, including those suspected of being disaster-related. Although progress is being made towards recovery and reconstruction, including the start of people moving into temporary housing and the reopening of all Kyushu Shinkansen lines, more than 1,500 disaster victims remain in evacuation centers.

Well water abnormality ``How long will it last?'' Residents are worried in Yatsushiro City, where there is a lot of use - ``Response team'' set up, issues include cost and Kumamoto earthquake

According to the prefecture, as of the 25th, 1,514 people were forced to live in evacuation centers at 32 locations within the prefecture. A total of 71,518 houses were damaged, and 9,540 were completely or partially destroyed. The extent of damage has not yet been assessed for 10,663 buildings. Only 776 requests for publicly funded demolition were accepted.

Emergency restoration work has been completed for water outages that affected up to 108,000 homes. However, damage has been reported to approximately 4,500 households in Yatsushiro City, which is highly dependent on well water, and there is no prospect of complete recovery.

Meanwhile, a total of 182 emergency temporary housing units have been completed in 10 housing complexes in Hikawa Town, Kosa Town, Uki City, and Kumamoto City, and disaster victims have begun moving in. A total of 700 units are planned to be developed and moved into 25 housing complexes by the end of this year. Construction has also begun on temporary housing to be built on the premises of their homes in Hikawa-cho.

On the 18th, the Kyushu Shinkansen, which had been suspended since the earthquake, resumed service between Kumamoto and Shin-Minamata. JR Kyushu has announced that it will resume service on the Kagoshima Line between Uto and Yatsushiro from October 10th.

Starting in October, the ``Kumamoto Fukko Support Discount'' will begin as a measure to stimulate tourism demand, offering discounts of up to 60% on travel and accommodation fees. According to the prefecture, approximately 370 lodging facilities within the prefecture are participating, and sales began on September 15th. It is said that some facilities have reached their planned numbers immediately after their release.