A ceremony was held Tuesday commemorating the opening of a support center in tsunami-hit Miyako, Iwate Prefecture, built with ¥70 million in contributions from Singapore citizens.
The support center represents one of the postdisaster reconstruction projects the Singapore Red Cross has funded along with the Japanese and Singapore governments, Singapore Red Cross Director of Operations Lim Theam Poh said at the ceremony.
Iwate Gov. Takuya Tasso, who worked in Singapore as a diplomat before starting his political career in the mid-1990s, sent a message to the ceremony thanking Singaporean citizens for their support.
The 320-sq.-meter barrier-free support center will be used as a community center for aged and disabled people and for consulting services for others affected by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
Support center staff will also visit 400 nearby temporary houses built for those who lost their homes in the disaster.