September 1 is Disaster Prevention Day. It was established in memory of the Great Kanto Earthquake of this date in 1923 (Taisho 12). Drills for earthquake, tsunami, typhoon, and storm-surge preparedness are held across the country.
Do you know the “Earthquake Ginkgo” that stands in Otemabori Green Space (1 Otemachi, Chiyoda Ward), not far from the Palaceside Building?
According to the Chiyoda Ward Board of Education plaque, the tree once stood around where the Palaceside Building is now. The Great Kanto Earthquake wrapped Tokyo in fire. In a downtown that had become a burned plain, this ginkgo miraculously survived and gave hope as a “symbol of recovery.”
Later it was nearly felled in a reconstruction land readjustment, but the then director of the Central Meteorological Observatory regretted that and asked the director of the Imperial Capital Reconstruction Agency to “leave it for later generations.” It was transplanted to its present site—so the plaque says.
The ginkgo that endured an earthquake nearly a century ago still holds rich green leaves on a thick trunk. Wrapped in gold in autumn it is splendid. Look closely, though, and the trunk is blackened here and there with burn scars. It still seems to say we must not forget to prepare for disaster.
Mainichi Building Co., which manages the Palaceside Building, has held earthquake-response drills around this time each year. This year the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics had been scheduled, so the drill will be shifted. Comprehensive fire drills are also run twice a year. We will keep working toward a safe, secure building.