Prince Akishino and Prince Hisahito inspect the ruins of the earthquake in Kesennuma

On the 13th, Crown Prince Akishino and his eldest son, Prince Hisahito, visited the East Japan Great Earthquake Ruins and Memorial Museum in Kesennuma City, Miyagi Prefecture. This was Prince Hisahito’s first visit to inspect the reconstruction efforts in the Tohoku region since the disaster struck in 2011, when he was four years old.

The facility is housed in the former building of Kesennuma Kojo High School, which was devastated by the tsunami and preserved as an earthquake ruin, and includes a memorial museum that uses video presentations to convey the threat of the tsunami at the time.

Guided by local high school students engaged in storytelling activities, the two toured the school building, which retains its appearance from the time of the disaster, including cars that were swept into the third floor and left in place.

Standing in front of the indoor gymnasium, whose roof had been washed away, Crown Prince Akishino noted that the students who had remained on campus at the time had evacuated safely, saying, “It’s quite a distance to the evacuation site. I’m glad everyone made it there safely.” Prince Hisahito noticed that the windows inside the school building lacked frames and asked, “Were they washed away?” thereby seeking to understand the power of the tsunami.

The two observed how young people, including high school students, are…