Kamaishi played its part in Japan's post-war boom, continuing its reputation as a steel town, a reputation reflected in the name of its rugby team - the Kaminashi Nippon Steel Rugby Club. In 1960, the town was crippled by a tsunami generated by the 1960 Valdivia earthquake. However, following the closure of the steel mills in 1988, the economy of city collapsed, and almost half its population moved away. Kamaishi is now known more for commercial fishing than heavy industry. On September 30, 2010, "Foreign Policy" magazine used Kamaishi as an example of Japan's relative decline in the "Lost Decade".