Census shows population drop in tsunami-hit zone
The preliminary results of Japan's 2015 census show sharp falls in the populations of towns and cities in 3 northeastern prefectures that were hardest hit by the 2011 disasters.
The survey is taken every 5 years. The 2015 census was the first since the earthquake, tsunami and Fukushima nuclear accident on March 11th, 2011.
The preliminary results show that as of October 1st last year, the population of Miyagi Prefecture stood at about 2.33 million. The figure is down 0.6 percent from 2010.
The population of Iwate Prefecture was about 1.28 million, down 3.8 percent. The figure for Fukushima Prefecture was about 1.91 million, down 5.7 percent.
In Miyagi Prefecture, Onagawa Town registered the biggest population decline with a 37-percent reduction in the number of residents. In Iwate Prefecture, Otsuchi Town lost 23.2 percent. The most severe population losses occurred in municipalities that sustained massive damage from the tsunami.
Several municipalities in Fukushima Prefecture have no residents. Significant population declines have occurred in municipalities that had been designated as evacuation zones.
A decline of 87.3 percent was registered in Naraha Town, where the evacuation order was lifted last September, and a decline of 28.3 percent in Kawauchi Village, where the evacuation order was partially lifted in October 2014.