Across from the bustling Sun Sun Shopping Village and over the wooden Nakabashi Bridge, lies the red skeleton of the former Minamisanriku Disaster Prevention Center (Minamisanriku Bosai Center). The ruins are a grim reminder of the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, where the center was played a pivotal role in helping residents of Minamisanriku evacuate from the oncoming tsunami. On the second floor, twenty-five-year-old Miki Endo remained at her post to broadcast warnings over the loudspeaker as long as she could. Many lives were saved by those broadcasts, though she herself, along with 830 other Minamisanriku residents, perished in the tsunami that day.

The former Center is now part of the Minamisanriku Memorial Park of Earthquake Disaster. Above the park, an observation deck offers a view of  the Minamisanriku coast and the ongoing reconstruction, while plaques along the climb mark the progress of the tsunami wave, so visitors reflect on the disaster with every step. Newly-planted sakura trees line the main path, while the southern side is devoted to a “Forest for the Future.” One day, people may flock to the park for flower-viewing, shade-dappled walks, or stargazing. Amid the memories of  loss and the destructive power of the tsunami, there is also the wish for the flowers—and people’s smiles—to return again.