Utatsu Station (歌津駅, Utatsu-eki) was a JR East railway station located in Minamisanriku, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. The blue-roofed station platform remained standing after the 2011 tsunami, however the adjacent railway bridge and track (southwest of the station) collapsed. Services have now been replaced by a provisional bus rapid transit line.
Lines
Utatsu Station was served by the Kesennuma Line, and was located 42.3 rail kilometers from the terminus of the line at Maeyachi Station.
Station layout
Utatsu Station had two opposed side platforms connected by a level crossing. The station was unattended.
History
Utatsu Station opened on 11 December 1977. The station was absorbed into the JR East network upon the privatization of the Japan National Railways (JNR) on April 1, 1987. Operations were discontinued after the station was severely damaged by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, and rail services have now been replaced by a bus rapid transit line.
"JR気仙沼線 【前面展望 ５】 歌津⇒志津川"(video). YouTube.com. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2011-04-26. video of a train trip from Utatsu Station to Shizugawa Station in 2009, passing Shizuhama Station at around 03:45 minutes without stopping. Satellite photos (e.g., in Google Maps) showed that much of the landscape visible in the video was severely affected by the 2011 tsunami and most of the railway bridges the train travels across were partly or completely destroyed. The destination Shizugawa Station was obliterated.
