In Writing Culture, George Marcus wrote about 2 types of ethnography: the salvage mode and the redemptive mode. He described the “salvage mode” as being ethnography conducted before the DELUGE. Well, last week that “deluge” came to Akita, but not in the metaphorical sense that Marcus meant it.
Beginning around July 15 while other parts of the country were facing oppressive heat resulting in many reports of heat strokes, Akita was experiencing record amounts of rainfall. Within 24 hours there were reports of rising rivers threatening to overflow their banks, mud slides, and clogged drainage systems causing streets and homes to flood.
By Sunday, homes, schools, and business through the Akita City area were reporting damage caused by water rushing in from the streets—not necessarily from overflowing rivers and canals, but from poor sewer drainage.
While most mudslides appeared to have occurred outside the city-proper, at least one landslide caused the sidewalk and part of the street to collapse into the Asahi River, which flows right through the center of town.
This climate disaster occurred just 19 days before Akita’s penultimate summer festival event: the Kantо̄ festival 竿燈まつり (Aug 3–6). A festival in which I took part in for 7 years. Aside from its cultural significance, the nearly 1 million visitors it draws to the city have a massive economic impact on the city.
During COVID, the festival was canceled of course. In 2022 it was re-started, but did not draw the record numbers of tourists it had in the past.
This year, however, festival participants, organizers, and the many local business owners had been hoping for a 100% return to normal. They are now in a bit of a state of shock. As city workers rush to undo the the damage caused by flooded roads, many festival participants are stuck cleaning the mud from their homes and businesses, hoping to mitigate mold damage.
At the moment, the city is saying that the show will go on. If such a storm happens again closer to the beginning of the festival, however, I do not see how it could possible be held. Especially since many of the flooded underpasses and washed out sidewalks are right around the festival route.
While my initial project-goal was to look at the effects of population decline on rural folk festivals, one cannot ignore the effects that climate change is having and will have on cultural preservation and local heritage.
Rural Culture in Japan 
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