On the night of January 6, Japanese rescuers rescued 93-year-old lady Yoshiko Sakashita from a collapsed house in Shoin Town, Suzu City, Ishikawa Prefecture.
At this time, about 124 hours (5 days and 4 hours) had passed since the earthquake struck at 4 p.m. on January 1.
(Japanese 93-year-old lady rescued after being trapped for about 124 hours)
On weekdays, Yoshiko Sakashita lives with her 71-year-old eldest son, Seiichi.
On New Year's Day, the third son also came back with the children for the New Year, with a total of 7 people in the family.
After the earthquake, the children had a hard time escaping, but they didn't see Sakashita Yoshiko, who was resting in the bedroom on the first floor.
These days, the eldest son, Seiichi, spent the night in the car next to his house, and at the same time actively asked the fire department for help, hoping to rescue his old mother as soon as possible.
On the afternoon of January 6, the search and rescue finally began.
Rescuers use electric drills to open holes little by little, carefully expanding the space.
Affected by aftershocks, rescue work was interrupted several times.
Fortunately, Yoshiko Sakashita is still conscious after being trapped for many days.
The icy rain hit the face, and the rescuers continued to fight, finally rescuing the old lady at 8:19 p.m.
(93-year-old lady rescued)
The old lady injured her left leg and was subsequently taken to Zhuzhou General Hospital for surgery.
By the next day, January 7, the old lady was recovering well and was able to speak.
The 72 hours after the earthquake can be said to be the most critical "golden rescue time".
A medical worker who participated in the rescue said in an interview that he did not expect the elderly in their nineties to survive after being trapped for so long.
The eldest son, Seiichi, revealed:
"My mother had just drunk half a bowl of porridge before the earthquake. Perhaps it is because of this that I have the physical strength to survive the 5 days.
I am very grateful to the staff who risked their lives to save my mother, and I hope that her mother will recover soon. ”
(93-year-old lady rescued)
However, in the face of strong earthquakes, not everyone can be so lucky.
There are too many originally happy families that have become fragmented in an instant.
Naoyuki Teramoto, a 52-year-old man, works at a nursing care facility in Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture.
He and his 53-year-old wife, Hiromi, are raising four children, and their daily lives are very fulfilling and lively.
Every New Year's Day, a family of six goes to the house of Bhikkhu's father-in-law in Anamizu-cho, Ishikawa Prefecture, to welcome the New Year together.
However, this year, Naoyuki Teramoto still has to work on New Year's Day, so I asked my wife to go back with the 4 children first, and I will come back later.
(Naoyuki Teramoto)
This year, a total of 10 people were reunited at their father-in-law's house.
On the occasion of New Year's Eve, Naoyuki Teramoto sent New Year's wishes to his wife and children on social software.
The children also sent back a message, wishing their father all the best for the New Year.
But he didn't expect that more than ten hours later, he could no longer wait for a reply from his wife and children.
After the earthquake on New Year's Day afternoon, Naoyuki Teramoto called his wife several times, but he could not be contacted.
Since the local signal was not good, he was not particularly worried at first.
He sent a message to his family in the group: "Are you all okay? ”
(Naoyuki Teramoto can't contact his family)
Naoyuki Teramoto began to get anxious.
He saw the news on the Internet that his father-in-law's red-roofed house was buried by a mountain collapse, and immediately wanted to rush there.
However, the road to Anasui Town was damaged and traffic was disrupted, and Naoyuki Teramoto did not reach Yuki until January 5.
The familiar streets, full of ruins and collapsed houses, could only silently wait by the rescue site.
(Anasui Town Rescue Site)
Until January 4, heavy equipment was used for on-site rescue.
At 7 a.m. on Jan. 5, about 30 firefighters arrived to begin the search.
After a day of hard work, rescuers found the bodies of three people: a 79-year-old father-in-law, a 76-year-old mother-in-law and a second son.
Naoyuki Teramoto said in an interview that he was very sad, but still hoped that at least one or two of the remaining seven people would survive.
(Naoyuki Teramoto did not give up hope)
Affected by the aftershock, rescue efforts were temporarily suspended.
Seven hours after the search began on January 7, Naoyuki Teramoto was called to confirm the identity of the deceased.
The five bodies found this time were his two children and three other relatives.
At around 6:30 p.m. on January 7, rescuers found two bodies under the sand.
The deceased was Naoyuki Teramoto's wife and eldest son.
All 10 relatives died in the earthquake, and Naoyuki Teramoto wept bitterly.
"Until the end, I didn't want to give up.
If I could turn back the clock, I would like to come back here on New Year's Day to welcome the New Year with all of you, 11 people. ”
(Naoyuki Teramoto loses 10 relatives)
Last year, Naoyuki Teramoto's mother died.
In order to liven up the family atmosphere, the eldest son, Ryusheng, 24, plans a family trip.
The whole family set off together and went to Tokyo Disneyland, which has been waiting for a long time.
Naoyuki Teramoto's 19-year-old third son, Kyoya, was supposed to attend the coming-of-age ceremony on January 7 this year.
The eldest daughter, 15-year-old Mi Shining, is a junior high school student and will prepare for the entrance exam for high school this year.
Junxi, a 21-year-old second son, has been working at a restaurant in Tokyo since April 2023.
After a year of hard work, Junxi also prepared a "Chinese New Year's Eve dinner" for his family.
(Naoyuki Teramoto's family)
Now that he has just ushered in the New Year, Naoyuki Teramoto has lost all his relatives and is in deep despair.
In this regard, netizens also felt sad:
"This earthquake happened to be New Year's Day, and many relatives got together.
Many people who left their hometowns returned to Noto and were victimized. ”
(Screenshot from Yahoo Japanese netizens)
"A very loving and enviable family.
It's sad to see what happened to him. I'm worried that this father doesn't know what will happen in the future.
Including this father, all the bereaved family members who have lost their families may not be able to send their blessings heartily during the Chinese New Year in the future. ”
(Screenshot from Yahoo Japanese netizens)
"I cried when I saw this report.
With his wife and children all gone, leaving him alone, it's hard to imagine how painful and desperate it was.
Still, he has to face the media and move on, for which there is only respect. ”
(Screenshot from Yahoo Japanese netizens)
As of 2 p.m. on January 10, the confirmed death toll in Ishikawa Prefecture has increased to 206, and the number of missing people is 52.
(Screenshot of Japanese media report)
In the sudden earthquake, lives were lost.
Behind this, there are countless families who have been hit hard......