Six months after the major earthquake of January 2024, most of the communities throughout the Noto Peninsula were cancelling their annual Kiriko festivals. One exception was Notojima Island, where the young people of Koda decided to go ahead with their festival as a prayer for recovery from the disaster. Uniquely, in addition to the giant lantern floats, Koda is also a fire festival. The high point of the event features dancers waving burning straw torches as they circle around a 30-meter-tall pillar of flame.