Ex - Owner Ordered To Remove Soil Mounds Left After Deadly Atami Mudslide
Local authorities in central Japan have ordered a real estate company to remove soil mounds that remained after a deadly mudslide last year.
Shizuoka Prefecture on Monday issued the order to Shinkansen Building. The company built the mounds on an elevated piece of land it owned in the city of Atami.
The mudslide in July last year left 27 people dead and one person missing. The prefecture estimates that the mounds still contain 21,000 cubic meters of soil.
The city issued an order in May demanding that steps be taken to prevent further landslides.
Former company representative Amano Fumio rejected the city's order. The prefecture has taken over the case from the city.
The prefecture's order is based on an ordinance created after the disaster to tighten regulations safeguarding piles of soil. This is the first time the name of the former owner has been made public.
Amano told NHK that he does not think the prefecture can apply the ordinance retroactively. He added that he is considering filing a lawsuit to have the order nullified.