On 11 March 2011 at 2:46 p.m. local time, the town was badly damaged by the tsunami caused by the 2011 Tohoku-Pacific Great earthquake. The tsunami was as tall as 10 m as it hit the town, destroying the majority of homes in Shobutahama and Hanabuchihama, as well as washing away or severely damaging many houses and buildings in the other coastal neighborhoods. The town estimates that over 1,000 houses were destroyed or damaged beyond use. The wave reached over 2 km inland, flooding the fields in front of Koyo Junior High School and Shiomidai and scattering the debris of the homes from Shobutahama. Approximately 95% of the town's rice fields were also flooded with seawater.