Typhoon Sansan Turns 'Wonryeonggongju' Setting into Ruins... 3,000-Year-Old Ancient Tree Also Toppled

Partial Road Closures in Some Areas Due to Landslide on Yakushima Island

The image is unrelated to the main content. [Photo by Busan Maritime Police Agency]

A centuries-old tree on Yakushima Island in Japan was toppled due to the impact of Typhoon No. 10 'San-san,' Yomiuri Shimbun reported on the 3rd. Yakushima is the island that served as the setting for the animation 'Mononoke Hime' (Princess Mononoke).

According to Kumiko Yabuta, a mountain guide on Yakushima in Kagoshima Prefecture, the 'Yayoi Cedar,' estimated to be 3,000 years old, was recently found broken. It could not withstand the strong winds of San-san, which struck from the 27th to the 29th of last month. Currently, landslides have also occurred on the island, and traffic is prohibited in some areas.

Yayoi Cedar Photo by Yakushima Town Official Website

The Yayoi Cedar is one of Japan's representative giant trees. It measures 26.1 meters in height and 8.1 meters in circumference. It is known to have lived for 3,000 years since the Yayoi period, Japan's Bronze and Iron Age.

Yakushima, called the "Island of Life," was registered as Japan's first UNESCO World Natural Heritage site in 1993 along with the Shirakami Mountains. It is also well known as the setting for the 1997 animation 'Mononoke Hime.' Director Hayao Miyazaki is reported to have stayed on Yakushima for five nights and six days with the production team.

In Japan, where San-san passed through, significant damage occurred including landslides, house destruction, river flooding, and inundation. In some areas, carp were even found on the roads.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.