Sole survivor faces a slow death

4 Aug 2011

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Just after the terrible tsunami in March, I blogged about the only pine tree left standing in Rikuzentakata, but recent news from the town is not encouraging. Standing 30 metres tall, the tree is the lone survivor of 70,000 other pine trees that had protected the town from the sea for nearly 300 years. When the great wave hit Rikuzentakata on 11 March, it was four stories high and tore the other trees out of the earth, hurling them through the buildings as the town was laid waste.  

The dense pine forest of Rikuzentakata was much loved by the townspeople, partly because it protected the town and partly because a dense, mature forest by the beach made it such a wonderful place to enjoy their summers. Since March, the remaining tree has been a rallying point for the survivors, a symbol of fortitude, endurance and hope. Posters around the town carry a photograph of the tree and the slogan: "Join our hearts together, and let's bring our hometown back to life." Now, ominously, its needles are turning from green to red.  

The earthquake which triggered the tsunami caused the seabed to shift 24 metres and the land on the town’s waterfront fell by as much as three metres in some places. As a result, salt water has flooded in around the roots of the tree and is slowly poisoning it. So now, for local people, efforts to save the tree have become an important demonstration of their determination to recover and restore their town. The trunk of the tree is swathed in bandages to help it recover from the battering it took and a caisson of interlocking steel plates has been sunk around its base to protect it from the waves. In the end it may be necessary to try and move the tree, but the chances of success in such an operation are not particularly high.

Those working to save the tree have one last strategy to make it the start of a regeneration of the town, even if it dies. They have taken cuttings of branches and grafted them onto the trunks of similar pines so they can preserve its DNA. In a few years’ time there will be a nursery of daughter trees that can be transplanted. The town is talking about rebuilding the entire Matsubara from scratch, even if that takes decades.

There is a short video (in English) on Youtube about the efforts to save the tree. To view it, click here

Posted by Brian September 21, 2011

I am sad to hear this.  I wrote a poem about the pine tree of Rikuzentakata, call “One Tree”, and its role as a symbol of hope.  I would not wish to have to write another poem about its demise.  Thanks for keeping people informed.

Posted by Paris escorte May 19, 2012

Lovely post forte. Jamais pensé qu’il était aussi facile. Beau travail!

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