The Sendai District Court on Tuesday ordered a kindergarten in Miyagi Prefecture to pay ¥177 million in damages over the deaths of four children in a school bus that was swamped by the March 11, 2011, tsunami as it was being driven toward lower ground.
It was the first ruling on a damages suit filed by families of tsunami victims against operators of facilities in 3/11 disaster areas. It could affect at least eight other similar damages suits filed by victims' relatives.
The ruling focused on whether the kindergarten, as an institution with a responsibility to protect the lives of children, could have foreseen the risks of tsunami and whether it took appropriate measures to avert those risks.