Wakura Onsen develops disaster manual after Noto earthquake evacuation

Following the magnitude 7.6 earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula on January 1, 2024, the Wakura Onsen hot spring complex in Ishikawa Prefecture has developed a new disaster response manual.

During the earthquake, approximately 1,200 guests and visitors were staying at the 22 traditional ryokan inns within the Wakura Onsen cooperative. Despite the chaos and the issuance of a major tsunami warning, staff successfully guided guests to higher ground, including community centers and local schools. Although evacuation sites were significantly overcrowded, exceeding their official capacities, no injuries or deaths were reported among the guests or visitors.

Local authorities in Nanao and the Wakura Onsen hotel association are now using the lessons learned from this event to create standardized action plans. The goal is to ensure that the successful evacuation, which some locals described as a ‘miracle,’ becomes a repeatable standard rather than a matter of luck in future emergencies.