Taro, Iwate
Encyclopedia
was a town
located in Shimohei District
, Iwate
, Japan
.
On June 6, 2005 Tarō, along with the village of Niisato
, was merged into the expanded city of Miyako
and no longer exists as an independent municipality
.
As of 2003, the town had an estimated population
of 4,648 and a density
of 46.00 persons per km². The total area was 101.05 km².
The former town is located to the east of the prefectural capital Morioka
and to the north of the regional center Miyako
with which it has now merged. The area has a rugged coastline to the east, which is a part of Sanriku
rias
coast. The main local industry is fishing
.
The town built two 10 meter tall seawalls to prevent flooding from tsunami
, which devastated the town in 1611, 1896, and 1933. The seawalls were designed to divert tsunami water to the side of the town, so that the damage of the residential area can be minimized from tsunami as high as 15 metres (49.2 ft). However, the seawall did not protect the town when an earthquake and tsunami
struck Japan on 11 March 2011 with a height estimated from 12 metres (39.4 ft) to 37.9 metres (124.3 ft).
Towns of Japan
A town is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture , city , and village...
located in Shimohei District
Shimohei District, Iwate
is a district located in Iwate Prefecture, Japan.Following the merger of Tarō and Niisato into Miyako and as of 2003 population data, the district has an estimated population of 43,747 and a population density of 21.39 persons per km²...
, Iwate
Iwate Prefecture
is the second largest prefecture of Japan after Hokkaido. It is located in the Tōhoku region of Honshū island and contains the island's easternmost point. The capital is Morioka. Iwate has the lowest population density of any prefecture outside Hokkaido...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
On June 6, 2005 Tarō, along with the village of Niisato
Niisato, Iwate
Niisato was a village located in Shimohei District, Iwate, Japan.On June 6, 2005 Niisato, along with the town of Tarō, was merged into the expanded city of Miyako and no longer exists as an independent municipality....
, was merged into the expanded city of Miyako
Miyako, Iwate
is a city located in Iwate, Japan.It was founded on February 11, 1941.The city lies along the coast where the flows into the Pacific Ocean. It is connected to Morioka by an east-west train line and highway and the coastal highway also goes through the town...
and no longer exists as an independent municipality
Municipalities of Japan
Japan has three levels of government: national, prefectural, and municipal. The nation is divided into 47 prefectures. Each prefecture consists of numerous municipalities. There are four types of municipalities in Japan: cities, towns, villages and special wards...
.
As of 2003, the town had an estimated population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 4,648 and a density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 46.00 persons per km². The total area was 101.05 km².
The former town is located to the east of the prefectural capital Morioka
Morioka, Iwate
is the capital city of Iwate Prefecture, Japan.As of 2005, the city has an estimated population of 300,740 and a population density of 588.11 persons per km². The total area is 489.15 km²....
and to the north of the regional center Miyako
Miyako, Iwate
is a city located in Iwate, Japan.It was founded on February 11, 1941.The city lies along the coast where the flows into the Pacific Ocean. It is connected to Morioka by an east-west train line and highway and the coastal highway also goes through the town...
with which it has now merged. The area has a rugged coastline to the east, which is a part of Sanriku
Sanriku
is a historical region of Japan on the northeastern side of the island of Honshu, corresponding to today's Aomori, Iwate and parts of Miyagi Prefecture...
rias
RIAS
RIAS can stand for one of the following:*Rias, the plural of Ria, a lower river valley submerged by the sea*"Research Institute for Advanced Study", the former research facility created by the Glenn L...
coast. The main local industry is fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
.
The town built two 10 meter tall seawalls to prevent flooding from tsunami
Tsunami
A tsunami is a series of water waves caused by the displacement of a large volume of a body of water, typically an ocean or a large lake...
, which devastated the town in 1611, 1896, and 1933. The seawalls were designed to divert tsunami water to the side of the town, so that the damage of the residential area can be minimized from tsunami as high as 15 metres (49.2 ft). However, the seawall did not protect the town when an earthquake and tsunami
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
The 2011 earthquake off the Pacific coast of Tohoku, also known as the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, or the Great East Japan Earthquake, was a magnitude 9.0 undersea megathrust earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred at 14:46 JST on Friday, 11 March 2011, with the epicenter approximately east...
struck Japan on 11 March 2011 with a height estimated from 12 metres (39.4 ft) to 37.9 metres (124.3 ft).