Memorial services were held across the country on Wednesday to mark the 15th anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake, with a moment of silence observed for victims of the disaster at 2:46 p.m. — the time the earthquake, which caused tsunamis, occurred.
The quake, which hit the Tohoku region in 2011, is the largest-scale earthquake to have occurred in Japan to date.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attended a memorial service in Fukushima Prefecture held in memory of all those who lost their lives to the disaster, which also caused a meltdown at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.