Ofunato
Ōfunato
City in Tōhoku, Japan
Ōfunato (大船渡市, Ōfunato-shi) is a city located in Iwate Prefecture, Japan. As of 30 April 2020[update], the city had an estimated population of 35,452, and a population density of 110 persons per km2 in 14,895 households.[1] The total area of the city is 322.51 square kilometres (124.52 sq mi).[2]
Ōfunato
大船渡市 | |
|---|---|
City | |
Ōfunato City Hall | |
Location of Ōfunato in Iwate Prefecture | |
| Coordinates: 39°4′4.8″N 141°43′30.8″E | |
| Country | Japan |
| Region | Tōhoku |
| Prefecture | Iwate |
| Area | |
| • Total | 322.51 km2 (124.52 sq mi) |
| Population (30 April 2020) | |
| • Total | 35,452 |
| • Density | 110/km2 (280/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+09:00 (Japan Standard Time) |
| Phone number | 0192-27-3111 |
| Address | 15, Sakarichō Aza Utsunosawa, Ōfunato-shi, Iwate-ken 022-8501 |
| Climate | Cfa |
| Website | Official website |
| Symbols | |
| Bird | Black-tailed gull |
| Flower | Camellia |
| Tree | Pine |
Ōfunato is located in southeastern Iwate Prefecture, with the Pacific Ocean to the east. Outside its bay, the warm and cold ocean currents meet, which allow a commercial fishing industry to flourish. The city has been attempting to establish itself as a major shipping port. Kaminari-iwa on the city's Goishi coastline has been designated one of the 100 Soundscapes of Japan by the Ministry of the Environment.[3] Much of the city is within the borders of the Sanriku Fukkō National Park.
Neighbouring municipalities
Iwate Prefecture
Climate
Ōfunato has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) bordering on a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfa) with warm summers and cold winters. The average annual temperature in Ōfunato is 8.4 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1472 mm with September as the wettest month and January as the driest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 21.0 °C, and lowest in January, at around -2.9 °C.[4]
| Climate data for Ōfunato, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1963−present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 16.8 (62.2) |
17.7 (63.9) |
23.9 (75.0) |
32.0 (89.6) |
34.7 (94.5) |
33.7 (92.7) |
37.0 (98.6) |
37.0 (98.6) |
34.0 (93.2) |
28.2 (82.8) |
22.8 (73.0) |
21.2 (70.2) |
37.0 (98.6) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 4.7 (40.5) |
5.6 (42.1) |
9.1 (48.4) |
14.5 (58.1) |
19.1 (66.4) |
22.1 (71.8) |
25.6 (78.1) |
27.2 (81.0) |
24.2 (75.6) |
19.0 (66.2) |
13.3 (55.9) |
7.4 (45.3) |
16.0 (60.8) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 1.1 (34.0) |
1.4 (34.5) |
4.4 (39.9) |
9.4 (48.9) |
14.2 (57.6) |
17.9 (64.2) |
21.7 (71.1) |
23.2 (73.8) |
20.0 (68.0) |
14.4 (57.9) |
8.6 (47.5) |
3.5 (38.3) |
11.7 (53.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −2.4 (27.7) |
−2.3 (27.9) |
0.1 (32.2) |
4.7 (40.5) |
9.9 (49.8) |
14.5 (58.1) |
18.7 (65.7) |
20.1 (68.2) |
16.5 (61.7) |
10.2 (50.4) |
4.1 (39.4) |
−0.2 (31.6) |
7.8 (46.0) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −11.0 (12.2) |
−11.6 (11.1) |
−8.5 (16.7) |
−4.3 (24.3) |
0.2 (32.4) |
3.8 (38.8) |
4.9 (40.8) |
10.2 (50.4) |
4.7 (40.5) |
−0.3 (31.5) |
−4.8 (23.4) |
−9.2 (15.4) |
−11.6 (11.1) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 51.3 (2.02) |
41.0 (1.61) |
103.8 (4.09) |
129.1 (5.08) |
153.9 (6.06) |
174.4 (6.87) |
196.4 (7.73) |
182.1 (7.17) |
200.2 (7.88) |
161.3 (6.35) |
88.6 (3.49) |
61.3 (2.41) |
1,546.7 (60.89) |
| Average snowfall cm (inches) | 13 (5.1) |
14 (5.5) |
8 (3.1) |
1 (0.4) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
1 (0.4) |
9 (3.5) |
45 (18) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 5.3 | 5.0 | 7.7 | 8.6 | 9.5 | 10.2 | 12.6 | 10.7 | 11.1 | 8.9 | 6.9 | 6.6 | 103.1 |
| Average snowy days | 4.6 | 4.1 | 2.3 | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 2.7 | 14 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 62 | 62 | 62 | 65 | 71 | 79 | 82 | 82 | 80 | 75 | 69 | 65 | 71 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 141.9 | 134.9 | 158.2 | 174.1 | 180.4 | 151.4 | 133.9 | 143.7 | 118.7 | 136.9 | 137.9 | 131.9 | 1,741.4 |
| Source: Japan Meteorological Agency[5][6] | |||||||||||||
Per Japanese census data,[7] the population of Ōfunato peaked around the year 1980, and has declined over the past 40 years.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1920 | 24,175 | — |
| 1930 | 28,608 | +18.3% |
| 1940 | 32,767 | +14.5% |
| 1950 | 41,589 | +26.9% |
| 1960 | 47,363 | +13.9% |
| 1970 | 48,816 | +3.1% |
| 1980 | 50,132 | +2.7% |
| 1990 | 47,219 | −5.8% |
| 2000 | 45,160 | −4.4% |
| 2010 | 40,737 | −9.8% |
| 2020 | 34,728 | −14.8% |
The area of present-day Ōfunato was part of ancient Mutsu Province, and has been settled since at least the Jōmon period, and numerous shell middens around Ōfunato Bay have been excavated by archaeologists. During the Sengoku period, the area was dominated by various samurai clans before coming under the control of the Date clan during the Edo period, who ruled Sendai Domain under the Tokugawa shogunate.
The village of Ōfunato was created within Kessen District, Iwate on 1 April 1889 with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. The 1896 Sanriku earthquake caused a 25-meter tsunami which killed 27,000 people in the area. Ōfunato was elevated to town status on 1 April 1932. The 1933 Sanriku earthquake had a magnitude of 8.4 and caused a 28-meter tsunami which killed 1522 people.
The neighboring town of Sakari and the villages of Akasaki, Takkon, Massaki, Ikawa and Hikoroichi merged with Ōfunato on 1 April 1952, forming the city of Ōfunato. The city became internationally famous when it was hit by a tsunami caused by the Valdivia earthquake in Chile 22 May 1960. On 15 November 2001, the town of Sanriku (from Kesen District) was merged into Ōfunato.
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
Ōfunato hit the headlines again when it was heavily damaged in the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.[8] The wave was estimated to have reached 23.6 meters in height.[9] Funneled in by the narrow bay, the tsunami continued inland for 3 kilometres.[10] Ofunato's theatre - which had remarkably sustained no damage - was one of the few buildings still standing, and gave shelter to about 250 survivors.[11][12] Provisional counts listed 3,498 houses out of 15,138 houses in the town destroyed by the tsunami and 305 lives were confirmed lost.[13][14] At least six of the town's 58 designated evacuation sites were inundated by the tsunami.[15] The impact of the earthquake and tsunami on Ōfunato, as well as the rescue efforts in its aftermath, was featured extensively in the British documentary "Japan's Tsunami Caught on Camera" which was broadcast on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom.
Ōfunato has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city legislature of 25 members. Ōfunato contributes one seat to the Iwate Prefectural legislature. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Iwate 2nd district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.
The local economy is largely based on commercial fishing, with cement production and wood processing as secondary industries. [citation needed]
- Kitasato University – Sanriku campus
- Ōfunato has 11 public elementary schools and five public middle schools operated by the city government, and two public high schools operated by the Iwate Prefectural Board of Education. The city also has one private high school. [citation needed]
Railway
Sanriku Railway Company – Sanriku Railway Rias Line
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East Japan Railway Company (JR East) – Ōfunato Line (services suspended indefinitely and replaced by a BRT)
Highway
Port
- Port of Ōfunato
- Goishi Coast, National Place of Scenic Beauty and Natural Monument[16]
- Shimofunato Shell Mound, Ōhora Shell Mound, Takonoura Shell Mound, National Historic Sites
- Sangojima, National Place of Scenic Beauty
Spain – Palos de la Frontera, Huelva, Spain[17] – sister city since 12 August 1992
- Yoshinobu Fujiwara, politician
- Nanae Sasaki, marathon runner
- Tochinohana Hitoshi, sumo wrestler
- Ōfunato City official statistics (in Japanese)
- 詳細データ 岩手県紫波町. 市町村の姿 グラフと統計でみる農林水産業 (in Japanese). Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
- "100 Soundscapes of Japan". Ministry of the Environment. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
- 大船渡 平年値（年・月ごとの値） 主な要素. Japan Meteorological Agency. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- 観測史上1～10位の値（年間を通じての値）. Japan Meteorological Agency. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- Ofunato devastated by tsunami BBC report, 12 March 2011
- "23.6-meter-high tsunami triggered by March 11 quake: survey" Kyodo News, 23 March 2011
- "A thousand bodies a day will be recovered every day now". The Age. 22 March 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- Tritten, Travis, J., and T. D. Flack, "U.S. rescue teams find devastation in northern city of Ofunato", Stars and Stripes, 15 March 2011, retrieved 16 March 2011.
- Gilhooly, Rob, "Survivors strive to start picking up the pieces", Japan Times, 27 March 2011, p. 7.
- Kyodo News, "Tsunami hit more than 100 designated evacuation sites Archived 14 April 2011 at the Wayback Machine", Japan Times, 14 April 2011, p. 1.
- "碁石海岸". Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
- "International Exchange". List of Affiliation Partners within Prefectures. Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR). Retrieved 21 November 2015.
Media related to Ofunato, Iwate at Wikimedia Commons
- Official Website (in Japanese)
- Video footage of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami as experienced in Ōfunato