Minamisōma

Minamisōma 南相馬市
City
Minamisōma City Hall
Flag Seal
Location of Minamisōmain Fukushima Prefecture
Minamisōma
Coordinates: 37°38′31.9″N 140°57′26.3″E
Country	Japan
Region	Tōhoku
Prefecture	Fukushima Prefecture
Government
• Mayor	Katsunobu Sakurai
Area
• Total	398.58 km2 (153.89 sq mi)
Population  (1 October 2017)
• Total	55,580
• Density	140/km2 (360/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
- Tree	Japanese Zelkova
- Flower	Sakura
- Bird	Skylark
- Fish	Salmon
- Insect	Firefly
Address	2-27 Motomachi, Haramachi-ku, Minamisōma-shi, Fukushima-ken 975-8686
Website	Official website

Minamisōma (南相馬市, Minamisōma-shi) is a city located in Fukushima Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. As of 1 October 2017, the city had an estimated population of 55,880 in 26,093 households and a population density of 140 persons per km² . The total area of the city was 398.58 square kilometres (153.89 sq mi).

Geography

Minamisōma is located in northeastern Fukushima Prefecture, bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Abukuma Plateau to the west.

Neighboring municipalities

• Fukushima Prefecture
  • Sōma
  • Iitate
  • Namie

Climate

Minamisōma has a humid climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa). The average annual temperature in Minamisōma is 12.4 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1285 mm with September as the wettest month.The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 24.7 °C, and lowest in January, at around 1.7 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Minamisōma peaked ar around the year 1990.

Census Year	Population
1970	69,105
1980	74,296
1990	77,253
2000	75,246
2010	70,878

History

The area of present-day Minamisōma was part of ancient Mutsu Province, and has been settled since at least the Jōmon period. Numerous Kofun period remains have been found in the area. During the Edo period, the area was part of the holdings of Sōma Domain. After the Meiji Restoration, it was organized as part of Iwaki Province. With the establishment of the municipalities system on April 1, 1896, the area was organized into a number of towns and villages within Sōma District, including the town of Hara on September 1, 1897. Hara was raised to city status on March 20, 1954, becombing the city of Haramachi. The present city of Minamisōma was established on January 1, 2006, from the merger of Haramachi with the towns of Kashima and Odaka (both from Sōma District).

2011 earthquake and tsunami

Minamisōma was partially inundated by the tsunami which resulted from the Tōhoku earthquake on March 11, 2011, and suffered heavy damage. As of April 9, 2011, 400 residents were confirmed dead, with 1,100 missing.

Radiation monitor showing radiation at Minamisoma: 0.532 μSv/h. This equates to an annual radiation dose of 4.66 millisieverts, compared to the government's criteria for return of 20 millisieverts per year.

Minamisōma is about 25 kilometres (16 miles) north of Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant, the site of the nuclear accident that followed the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. Much of the city lies within the 30 kilometer mandated evacuation zone near the plant, and thus most of the residents were forced to leave. Approximately a week after the earthquake Minamisōma was in the news again as the town's mayor Katsunobu Sakarai asserted that his people had been "abandoned" in the wake of orders for all remaining residents to stay in their homes inside the exclusion zone around the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant.

In July, beef from Minamisōma was found to be contaminated with radioactive cesium above the legal limit, according to the Daily Yomiuri.

In March 2012, the city was divided into three zones: in the first, people were free to go in and out but not allowed to stay overnight; in the second, access was limited to short visits; and in the third area, all entry was forbidden because of elevated radiation levels that were not expected to go down within five years after the accident.

On April 15, 2012 some of people of Minamisōma were able to return to their homes when the evacuation zone was reduced from 30 kilometers to 20 kilometers from the reactors, with the exception of a wide area on the western border of the city with the town of Namiie. At the time the evacuation order was lifted the centre of city was still scattered with ruins and lacked electricity and running water, while schools and hospitals remained closed. On July 12, 2016 the evacuation order was lifted for all areas of the city except the western border region with Namiie; this permitted all of the remaining evacuees (with the exception of one household) to return home. In August of the same year, elementary schools and junior high schools, which has been closed since 2011, were allowed to reopen.

Government

Minamisōma has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city legislature of 24 members.

Education

Minamisōma has 16 public elementary schools and six public junior high schools operated by the city government and four public high schools operated by the Fukushima Prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

Railway

• JR East – Jōban Line
  • Momouchi - Odaka - Iwaki-Ota - Haranomachi - Kashima

Highway

• Jōban Expressway – Minamisoma IC, Minamisoma-Kashima SA
• Japan National Route 6
• Japan National Route 114

Sister city relations

• Pendleton, Oregon, United States

Local attractions

• ruins of Odaka Castle
• Sakurai kofun
• Daihisan stone Buddhas

Further reading

• Sasaki, Takashi (2013). Fukushima: vivir el desastre (in Spanish). Translated by F. Javier de Esteban Baquedano. Gijón, Spain: Satori Ediciones. ISBN 978-84-941125-3-9.

External links

• Media related to Minamisōma, Fukushima at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website Template:Ja icon
• "Japanese City's Cry Resonates Around the World", New York Times article, April 6, 2011
• "Cleaning up Minami-Soma", editorial in JapanToday, October 22, 2011