Onagawa was already in decline when it was obliterated in 2011 by the Tohoku tsunami. Can it both rebuild and rejuvenate itself?

On the shore of eastern Japan a wrecked police station lies on its side, ripped from the ground by the tsunami that devastated the country in 2011.

“We are going to keep that building as a reminder of the disaster,” says Yoshinori Taura, assistant director of the town of Onagawa’s recovery promotion division. “To make sure the memories are passed to the next generation.”

By having these facilities in the centre of town we hope that we will be able to attract a new energy and a new vibe

Related: Eight years after Fukushima, what has made evacuees come home?

We hope that the way we rebuild the town will serve as a model to deal with how to bring people back to the community and stay in the community

Related: The school beneath the wave: the unimaginable tragedy of Japan’s tsunami