TOKYO, April 2 (Xinhua) -- April 1 marks three months since a major earthquake jolted the Noto Peninsula and surrounding areas in central Japan on New Year's Day this year, but disrupted daily lives of the victims remain a pressing issue.

Michizou Sanbai, a member of the Suzu City Council in Ishikawa Prefecture and the president of the Suzu Japan-China Friendship Association, told Xinhua recently on the phone about his current life.

"I have been living in my car for three whole months. It is estimated that the temporary housing constructed by the government will be completed on the 10th of this month, and then I can go apply."

On Jan. 1, a series of strong quakes of up to 7.6 magnitude rattled the Noto region and its vicinity and triggered a tsunami. As of on March 29, the devastating earthquake killed 244 people, injured 1,433 people, and damaged more than 75,000 homes, while over 15,000 people are still living at evacuation shelters, according to local authorities.

Sanbai said that there are many people like him who have lived in private cars or greenhouses for the past three months.

Although the Ishikawa prefectural government is setting up temporary housing for disaster-stricken people, applicants will outnumber the units of available houses. According to local media, Ishikawa Prefecture will build a total of 5,131 temporary housing units, but there are 6,610 applicants, with a coverage rate of less than 80 percent.

Sanbai told Xinhua that his town has built 86 units of temporary housing, but 96 households applied. "There will certainly be people who cannot live in them. At that time, priority will be given to people with disabilities and those with children, and the rest will be decided by drawing lots."

Temporary houses are free of charge for two years, after which people would need to find another place to live, such as public housing, Sanbai added.

The 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake caused the seabed to rise. The coastline of some hard-hit areas, including Suzu City, was pushed 100 to 200 meters into the sea. The original port could not berth ships, making it inconvenient for fishermen to go fishing, and their sources of livelihood have become a problem.

In addition, people in the affected areas are suffering from severe water shortages. According to the Ishikawa Prefecture government, about 8,000 households in Suzu City, Wajima City and Noto Town remained without water as of March 29.

The powerful earthquake also caused liquefaction in many places. According to Japan's National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention, liquefaction occurred in more than 2,000 locations in 32 towns in the prefectures of Ishikawa, Toyama, Fukui and Niigata, in which the strength of soil has been reduced by the earthquake, causing difficulties in pipeline repair.

Sanbai said that now traffic conditions in the affected areas have improved, and "we can receive mail and packages normally."

The opening ceremony of the local elementary school will be held on April 5, Sanbai added. "I heard that about 60 percent of the children will come back to school."

"Life must go on," he noted. Enditem

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