An elementary school where more than 80 pupils and teachers lost their lives as the 2011 tsunami washed out Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, will be preserved to remember what happened and improve the city's disaster preparedness, the mayor said.
Public opinion was split about whether Okawa Elementary School should be preserved or demolished. But at a news conference Saturday, Ishinomaki Mayor Hiroshi Kameyama unveiled a plan to turn the building into a monument.
"It's an important place to remember and mourn the victims as well as educate people about disaster preparedness and pass on what transpired," he said.