| The Port of Kitakyushu is a major port for the island of Kyushu, the third largest island of Japan. The city was created in 1963 when five independent municipalities (Kokura, Moji, Yahata, Tobata, and Wakamatsu) were merged. Port History Within the Port of Kitakyushu is Kokura. Kokura was the first target of the �at Man?bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki in August 1945. Kokura escaped that fate because of a cloud layer that obscured the target, leading to the expression �okura's luck?used in Japan to describe events when a person avoids something unpleasant without knowing it. Port Commerce The Port of Kitakyushu is a leading Japanese manufacturing center with much heavy industry including iron and steel, cement, glass, and heavy chemicals. The Port of Kitakyushu's Tachinoura Container Terminal covers 29 hectares and contains two terminals with over 1000 meters of quay at 10-12 meters of draft and almost 32.3 hectares of terminal. The two terminals can handle over 12 thousand TEUs of containerized cargo. The Port of Kitakyushu's Kokura container terminal opened in 1997. Covering 6.9 hectares, it has over almost 440 meters of quay and can handle 3366 TEUs of containerized cargo. The Kokura International Distribution Center provides multi-storage, disposal, and distribution of goods. Opening in 2005, the Port of Kitakyushu's Hibiki Container Terminal is the only terminal on the Japan Sea with a deep-water pier that can accommodate post-Panamax vessels. It offers over 800 meters of quay and four berths. The terminal can store almost 22.5 thousand TEUs of containerized cargo. Port of Kitakyushu harbor facilities in the Mojiko area include Shinhama for the handling of feed materials. Shinhama has 12 storage shelters with three 1.3 hectares of covered storage, .8 hectares of open storage, and a 6000 square meter freight handling yard. The Nisikaigan area not only handles cargo, but is available for public events and provides an attractive waterfront area. It provides 10 berths and over 1600 meters of quay at up to 11 meters deep, 12 covered storage shelters of 2.8 hectares, almost a hectare of open storage yard, and a freight handling yard of over 6 hectares. The Shinmoji area is a hub for cargo distribution and is connected to land, sea, and air networks. The Port of Kitakyushu's Kokura area contains the Sunatsu ferry wharf with regular ferry service lines. The Kokura area offers seven berths and 965 meters of quay, passenger boarding facilities, and 1.2 hectares of freight-handling yard. The Doukai area in the Port of Kitakyushu has a protruding embankment for efficient cargo-handling. It offers 10 berths on an over 1100-meter quay, four covered storage shelters of .8 hectare, 1.2 hectares of passenger facilities, and .8 hectares of freight-handling yard. In 2003, the Port of Kitakyushu handled almost 89 million tons of cargo. Exports were primarily steel materials, coke, chemicals, and auto parts. Imports were dominated by iron ore, coal, and liquefied natural gas. International container cargo exports were primarily auto parts, chemicals and chemical products, and industrial equipment. International container cargo imports were dominated by furniture, clothing, pottery, fruits and vegetables, and metals. Cruising and Travel While the City of Kitakyushu is known as an industrial area, it also contains many sightseeing and recreation opportunities. First among them is the 1602 Kokura Castle, which was fully restored and opened to the public in the 1990s. Moji-ko Retro is an attractive tourist area where visitors can hire rickshaws, shop for souvenirs, and find some great local restaurants. The nearby Hiraodai is a karst plateau about a 40-minute drive from Kokura station where visitors can hike, camp, and |
