15 Years On: Miyagi Police Resolved to Return Victims’ Remains to Families

Sendai, Miyagi Pref., March 10 (Jiji Press)–The return of the bone fragments of a 6-year-old girl who went missing in the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami came as a welcome surprise to her family in October last year, more than 14 years after the disaster. The remains were identified as those of Natsuse Yamane by a unit in the first investigation division of the Miyagi Prefectural Police Headquarters. The unit was established in November 2011 to search for and investigate unidentified remains and people still missing after the catastrophe. The episode renewed prefectural police officers’ commitment to reuniting as many remains as possible with their families. “Someone is waiting for each and every set of remains,” says inspector Yuya Kyono, 43, who leads the unit. “Our mission is to return them to where they belong.” In February 2023, the Minamisanriku Police Station of the prefectural police received a report of what appeared to be a human bone. It had been found by workers at a company conducting sorting operations following cleanup work in the city of Kesennuma and the town of Minamisanriku, both located on the Pacific coast of Miyagi Prefecture in northeastern Japan. Police receive around a dozen similar reports each year, most of which ultimately involve animal remains, such as those of dogs or cats. In this case, however, the object later brought to the station resembled a human jawbone, with several teeth still attached. Considering its size and the circumstances of its discovery, coroners in the first investigation division concluded that it was highly likely to belong to a child who had gone missing in the disaster. The case was then handed over to the search and investigation unit. The unit worked with specialized institutions to carry out mitochondrial DNA testing, which traces maternal lineage, and proteomic analysis, which can determine sex from proteins found in teeth. In September last year, investigators compared the DNA profile obtained from the bone fragments with that of Chiyumi Yamane, the girl’s mother, who had previously filed a missing-person report, and determined that the remains belonged to her daughter, Natsuse. According to family members, Natsuse had been at home with her grandmother in the coastal town of Yamada, in Iwate Prefecture, north of Miyagi, when the massive tsunami struck. Although the grandmother was rescued by other family members, Natsuse had remained missing. On Oct. 2 last year, representatives from the police search and investigation unit visited the girl’s home to explain how her remains had been found and identified. Her father, Tomonori, 52, her 49-year-old mother and her 26-year-old brother listened quietly, tears in their eyes. A handover ceremony was held at Minamisanriku Police Station on Oct. 16. Watching the mother gently cradle the urn containing her daughter’s remains, which she had received from the station chief, Kyono was struck anew by the fact that behind every set of remains was a grieving family. After expressing their gratitude with the words, “Thank you for everything,” the family took the girl’s remains home in the pouring rain. As Kyono stood outside the police station watching their car pull away, he bowed deeply, thinking, “I’m glad she was finally able to return home.” The prefectural police have so far identified 9,537 bodies recovered in the aftermath of the March 2011 disaster. The identities of six victims, however, including some whose remains were severely damaged, have yet to be confirmed. “In this case, a member of the public sensed that the object might be part of human remains, which ultimately led to the identification,” Kyono says. “If you come across anything suspicious, please don’t hesitate to contact the police.” END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]