Ishinomaki Line

Ishinomaki Line
KiHa 48 DMU on a local train, November 2014
Overview
Native name	石巻線
Type	Regional rail
Locale	Miyagi Prefecture
Termini	Kogota Onagawa
Stations	14
Operation
Opened	1912
Owner	JR East
Technical
Line length	44.9 km (27.9 mi)
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	None

The Ishinomaki Line (石巻線, Ishinomaki-sen^?) is a railway line in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Kogota Station in Misato with Onagawa Station in Onagawa, acting as a spur line from the Tōhoku Main Line to the central coast of Miyagi Prefecture. It connects with the Rikuu East Line and Tōhoku Main Line at Kogota Station, the Kesennuma Line at Maeyachi Station, and the Senseki Line at Ishinomaki Station, both in Ishinomaki, Miyagi. The line was damaged by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, and the damage was so severe that service between Urushuku and Onagawa was not reinstated until 21 March 2015.

The Senpoku Light Railway opened a 762 mm (2 ft 6 in) gauge line from Kogata to Ishinomaki in 1912. The line was nationalised in 1919 and converted to 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) gauge in 1920. The Oshika Light Railway opened a 762 mm gauge horse-drawn tramway from Ishinomaki to Watanoha in 1915, and extended it to Onagawa in 1924. A petrol-driven locomotive was introduced in 1926. The line was nationalised in 1939 and converted to 1,067 mm gauge the same year.

In 1958, the line was extended 1.4 km to the Onagawa Port, but that extension closed in 1980.

The line was severely damaged by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on 11 March 2011; the Kogata - Ishinomaki section being out of service for two months, the Ishinomaki - Watanoha section for a year, and the Watanoha - Urushuku section for two years. The final section from Urushuku to Onagawa reopened on 21 March 2015.