Continuously burning flames paying tribute to victims of the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster will be carried to Kobe for a Jan. 17 ceremony to remember the Great Hanshin Earthquake, it has been learned.
Flames from three memorials mourning the disaster victims and representing hope for recovery will be transported to the Higashiyuenchi Park in Kobe and used to light candles in the shape of the numbers 1 and 17, for Jan. 17, and 3 and 11, for March 11.
The three gas-fed "flames of hope" in the Tohoku region were themselves lit with flames from a similar "flame of hope" in the Kobe park. A non-profit organization (NPO) that manages the Kobe flame came up with the idea to use the Tohoku flames in the January ceremony. The organization proposed the idea to citizens' groups in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, Otsuchi, Iwate Prefecture, and Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture, which manage the flames there, and received their enthusiastic approval on the plan as a way to thank Kobe for its support.
Representatives from the three Tohoku areas will gather the flames taken from the memorials in advance. At 5:46 a.m. on Jan. 17, the same time the earthquake struck 18 years ago, relatives of the Kobe quake's victims will offer a silent prayer in front of the candles. The representatives who carry the flames are also due to talk with the relatives.
Masami Horiuchi, 62, representative director of the Kobe NPO, says, "On Jan. 17, I want people to remember the areas hit by the Hanshin quake. I want this event to be a symbol of cooperation between the two disaster areas."
Wednesday 2 January 2013
http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20130102p2a00m0na004000c.html
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