Chronology of Shiga Prefecture’s most important and interesting news headlines for April-June 2014 (according to the year, month, day, and time posted at Japan time).
Originally posted on Twitter under Shiga Headlines by Philbert Ono. Twitter posts are limited to 140 characters including spaces and links (shortened by Twitter).
| 2014/04/02 13:56 | Cherry blossoms along Lake Biwa Canal (Biwako Sosui) in Otsu lit up daily from tonight until April 13 (6:30 pm-9:30 pm). |
| 2014/04/02 14:00 | Cherry blossoms have started to bloom in Hikone today, 3 days later than last year. Full bloom expected a week later. http://t.co/Lh4UFNJapf |
| 2014/04/06 2:36 | Article about Shigaraki in today’s The Japan News: http://t.co/O1fRITow9i |
| 2014/04/07 12:57 | Overseas exports of Omi beef have been increasing since 2010. Fiscal 2013 saw a record high of 304 heads of Omi cattle exported. |
| 2014/04/09 5:43 | Hikone Castle cherry blossoms now in full bloom. http://t.co/dPcnfptowm |
| 2014/04/10 3:55 | As support for Windows XP ceased on April 9, Shiga Prefectural Government still uses 363 PCs (out of 6,400) running XP. They are kept offline. |
| 2014/04/11 14:21 | Large crowds at “Life and Prayer, Kannon Sculptures from Nagahama” (観音の里の祈りとくらし展) exhibition, Tokyo University of the Arts till April 13. |
| 2014/04/14 22:02 | In March, a male H.S. student in Moriyama used a teacher’s password to download students’ test results and more from the school’s server. |
| 2014/04/16 9:42 | A giant balloon in the shape of Minakuchi-Okayama Castle will be atop Mt. Okayama in Koka for 4 days from Apr. 17. http://t.co/DPE6g2e2ER |
| 2014/04/22 1:18 | Okada Rana, halfpipe snowboard Olympian from Otsu placing 5th at Sochi, announced yesterday her retirement and March marriage. |
| 2014/04/22 5:23 | Hikone native sprinter Kiryu Yoshihide, now in college, is gunning for a new record in running 100 meters. http://t.co/GoVjf1VhOb |
| 2014/04/24 16:33 | USB flash drives storing private info of 540 students/teachers at Nagahama Special Needs School stolen from teachers’ unlocked desk drawers. |
| 2014/04/25 15:04 | From April 15, Cathay Pacific serves “Mizukagami” Omi rice on Japan-Hong Kong flights in first/business classes. The chef is from Nagahama. |
| 2014/04/27 19:55 | Governor Kada will announce on May 7, 2014 whether or not she will seek reelection for a third term in July. |
| 2014/05/05 14:29 | From May 1, 2014 on weekends and holidays, a ¥300 donation to enter Mt. Ibuki is being requested at the summit and foot of the mountain. |
| 2014/05/07 9:11 | Gov. Yukiko Kada announced this afternoon that she won’t run for a 3rd term. She will instead support Mikazuki Taizo (三日月 大造 ). |
| 2014/05/08 10:40 | A new ship will start construction in 2017 to replace the 30-year-old Uminoko “floating school” for 5th graders learning about the lake. |
| 2014/05/12 13:13 | Seeking to stamp out seemingly rampant corruption at Otsu City Hall, Mayor Naomi Koshi will set up a committee to enact countermeasures. |
| 2014/05/12 13:20 | Otsu Mayor Naomi Koshi stated today that she will very much miss Gov. Kada and currently has no plans to support a gubernatorial candidate. |
| 2014/05/15 15:29 | New edition of Japan Post’s die-cut postcards are out. Shiga’s latest one shows Ishiyama-dera and Murasaki Shikibu. http://t.co/xiIpajwpMD |
| 2014/05/16 7:54 | Japanese manga about William Merrell Vories titled Ｗ・メレル・ヴォーリズ伝 now in bookstores for ¥800. http://t.co/6fLT0youTA |
| 2014/05/20 10:53 | Shiga’s foreigner population has decreased from 32,292 in 2008 to 23,823 in 2013. Brazilians saw the biggest drop (-50%) to 7,535 in 2013. |
| 2014/05/20 11:28 | Japan Policy Council forecasts the population of young women in Kora, Taga, & Ryuo to decrease by over 50% by 2040 at the current rate. |
| 2014/05/21 22:06 | Fukui District Court ruled yesterday that KEPCO is not to restart the No. 3 and 4 reactors at its Oi nuclear plant, citing safety concerns. |
| 2014/05/22 14:00 | A 55-year-old Shiga policeman was fired today for drunken motorcycle driving in Otsu. Got hurt hitting a guardrail, but he didn’t call the police. |
| 2014/05/22 14:12 | Otsu City Hall personnel advisor Genda Michihiro (46) 源田学弘 fired today after a conviction by Otsu District Court for groping a woman worker. |
| 2014/05/24 23:38 | Jr. high school headteacher (56) in Otsu was fired on May 23 for embezzling a total of ¥643,000 over 2 years from the PTA membership fund. |
| 2014/05/25 21:22 | English guide book for Shiga museums titled, “Discover the Museums in Shiga” available for free at museums/colleges. http://t.co/AoCDXOpvAG |
| 2014/05/26 14:19 | May 22-26, 2014 saw 75 car break-ins in eastern Shiga and Otsu. Car windows smashed and stuff stolen. Don’t leave things in your car. |
| 2014/05/27 19:59 | Chinese resident of Hikone, Son Yushu 孫 ゆう周 (31) arrested for selling counterfeit luxury brand goods online. He has admitted to the charges. |
| 2014/05/27 20:08 | Three Brazilians and one Peruvian arrested for a car break-in in Ritto. Suspects for the rash of recent car break-ins. One Brazilian was from Aichi. |
| 2014/05/27 20:20 | For the 1st time in 35 years, 19 Shinto priests from Shiga gave prayers in loincloths in Chikubushima waters for lake safety this summer. |
| 2014/05/29 20:58 | Repair work on the Shigaraki Kogen Railway’s collapsed bridge has started. Steel pillars are being placed in the river. They hope to reopen the railway within this year. |
| 2014/05/29 21:08 | NHK Otsu & Ritsumeikan Univ. will start joint research with an underwater robotic camera to photograph & study Lake Biwa’s underwater life. |
| 2014/05/29 21:11 | Otsu, Kyoto, & Nara hotels can now use telephone interpreting service in English, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, and Portuguese for foreigners. |
| 2014/05/30 22:32 | Yellow-sand haze observed in Hikone on May 30, 2014 for the first time this year. Particulate level is minor, but avoid hanging laundry outside. |
| 2014/06/04 12:25 | Rainy season in the Kinki Region (includes Shiga) started today, three days earlier than usual. |
| 2014/06/10 8:11 | Hikone-native Yoshihide Kiryu won the men’s 100 meters at the Japan Championships in Fukushima on June 8. http://t.co/LODzkD6ciW |
| 2014/06/16 3:15 | Uploaded a Pharrell Williams HAPPY video for Shiga Prefecture: http://t.co/8YKRkawDcK #happyday |
| 2014/06/17 16:16 | For the past 7 years, Takashima city has been concealing excessive dioxin levels in their incinerated refuse taken to a Kobe garbage dump. |
| 2014/06/22 3:39 | Nakanishi Makoto (39), assistant chief at Shiga Prefectural Board of Education, arrested for shooting upskirt video of a college coed at Seta Station. He was caught by a passerby who witnessed the crime. |
| 2014/06/22 3:51 | Yokozuna Hakuho and Miyagino Stable are lodging in Nagahama for 4 days from June 21. Their sumo practice at 滋賀近交運輸倉庫 is open to the public. |
| 2014/06/22 4:08 | Scenic lakeside Sugaura in northern Nagahama is to be designated as an Important Cultural Landscape 重要文化的景観. http://t.co/jmMVO1S76Q |
| 2014/06/28 11:53 | Alien waterweed rampant in Lake Biwa – The Japan News http://t.co/va0UJab5TF |
| 2014/06/29 12:10 | Gov. Kada apologized to Kansai governors for Takashima’s 7-year coverup of excessive dioxin levels in incinerated waste taken to Kobe. |
| 2014/06/29 12:15 | Shiga Prefecture is considering criminal prosecution of Takashima for the coverup of excessive dioxin levels in their incinerated refuse. |
