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Japan's Kobe and its surrounding areas marked on Sunday the 21st anniversary of the Great Hanshin Earthquake that claimed the lives of 6,434 people in 1995.
Some 9,000 people gathered early in the morning in Higashi-yuenchi Park, central Kobe, where the Earthquake Memorial Monument is located.
At 5:00 a.m. local time, over 7,000 bamboo lanterns were lit in the park, featuring the pattern of "1.17" and the kanji meaning "future".
At 5:46 a.m., the exact time when the deadly earthquake struck the city 21 years ago, people in the park mourned in silence, praying for the souls of the earthquake victims.
"I lost my mother in the quake. Now 21 years have passed, yet the sadness and sufferings brought by the quake remain unchanged. I would uphold the memory of my beloved mother," said 42-year-old Hiromi Yamamoto in an eulogy on behalf of the families who lost their loved ones in the quake.
Kizo Hisamoto, mayor of Kobe, said the city office will work to impart lessons learned from the quake to the next generation.
On Sunday, around 60 memorial events were held in Kobe and its neighboring areas.
In the city of Awaji, people sang in chorus the song "Flowers Open" at a park to mourn the quake victims. In the city of Takarazuka, over 650 people took part in a parent-child anti-disaster walk activity to visit disaster prevention facilities and learn how to react in case of a disaster.
Meanwhile, some problems left from the quake remain unresolved and affect the residents' life, one of which is a housing problem.
In the aftermath of the quake, governments of the disaster-hit cities concluded a 20-year lease contract with private owners to provide housing for thousands of people who had been rendered homeless by the quake.
However, in the chaotic circumstances, the authorities failed to inform the residents of the time limit. With the lease contract expiring in 2015, many residents have trouble moving to new home due to advanced age and other problems.
