Kesennuma, Miyagi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

**Kesennuma City**
**気仙沼市**
Kesennuma City's location in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan.
Location
Country	Japan
Region	Tōhoku
Prefecture	Miyagi Prefecture
Physical characteristics
Area	225.81 km² (87.19 sq mi)
Population (as of 2005)
Total	67,272
Density	298 /km² (772 /sq mi)
Location	38°53′N 141°35′E / 38.883, 141.583Coordinates: 38°53′N 141°35′E / 38.883, 141.583
Symbols
Tree	Japanese Black Pine
Flower	Azalea
Bird	Seagull
Symbol of Kesennuma City
Kesennuma City Government Office
Mayor	Suzuki Noboru
Address	〒988-8501 Kesennuma-shi, Yōka-machi 1, Chome 1-1
Phone number	0226-22-6600
Official website: www.city.kesennuma.miyagi.jp

Kesennuma (気仙沼市; -shi) is a city located in the extreme northeast of Miyagi Prefecture. It wraps around the western part of Kesennuma Bay, and also includes the island of Ōshima. Its coastline forms the southern boundary of the Rias Coastline National Park, which stretches north all the way to Aomori Prefecture.

The city borders Hirota Bay, Kesennuma Bay, and the Pacific Ocean to the east and Motoyoshi, Miyagi to the south. Iwate Prefecture makes up the remainder of its borders, with Murone Village to the west, and Rikuzen-Takata City to the north.

The highest point in Kesennuma is 711.9 m high, on the border with Motoyoshi, while the lowest point is at sea level.

The city was founded on June 1, 1953.

1 History
2 Climate
3 Sister / Friendship Cities
- 3.1 International Sister / Friendship Cities
- 3.2 Domestic Sister Cities
4 Economy
- 4.1 Industry
5 Education
6 Transportation
7 External links

[edit] History

June 1, 1953: Kesennuma Town, Shishiori Village, and Matsuiwa Village merge to incorporate as Kesennuma City.
April 1, 1955: Niitsuki Village, Hashikami Village, and Oshima Village are annexed.
March 31, 2006: Karakuwa Town is annexed.

[edit] Climate

Average temperature and precipitation in Kesennuma

Kesennuma is situated in a temperate climate zone and has a moderate climate. The city's average temperature is 10.8°C (53.8°F) and its average annual precipitation is 1,370.6 mm. Its all-time record high is 36.0°C on August 15, 1994, and its all-time record low is -12.6°C on February 17, 1980. The city's climate is fairly similar to Sendai, the largest city in Miyagi Prefecture. Since Kesennuma is located north of Sendai, it is naturally slightly cooler. However, Kesennuma is known to be fairly warm for a city located at its latitude, largely because of ocean currents that flow close by.

[edit] Sister / Friendship Cities

[edit] International Sister / Friendship Cities

- Puntarenas, Costa Rica
- Zhoushan, China
- Friendship relation with Ports of Kesennuma and Seattle, Washington, United States

[edit] Domestic Sister Cities

- Ichinoseki, Iwate
- Murone, Iwate

[edit] Economy

[edit] Industry

Kesennuma relies on tourism and commercial fishing, the latter being what the city is known for, especially its tuna, pacific saury and skipjack tuna production, keeping the fishing port very active. It also has a shark fin fishery.

[edit] Education

Kesennuma, as the largest center in northwest Miyagi, is an education center for high school, featuring five of them. It also has eight junior high schools and fourteen elementary schools.

[edit] Transportation

[edit] Train stations

JR East
- Kesennuma Line: Rikuzen-Hashikami - Saichi - Matsuiwa - Minami-Kesennuma - Fudōnosawa - Kesennuma
- Ōfunato Line: Kesennuma - Shishiori-Karakuwa - Kami-Shishiori

[edit] Major roads

National Highways
- Route 45
- Route 284
Prefectural Highways
- Miyagi Highway
  - 5 Kesennuma
  - 26 Kesennuma – Karakuwa
  - 34 Kesennuma - Rikuzen-Takata
  - 65 Motoyoshi – Kesennuma
  - 208, 209, 210, 211, 218 All Kesennuma