KANAZAWA (Kyodo) -- Japan on Wednesday marked one year since a powerful earthquake struck the Noto Peninsula in central Japan, leaving at least 500 dead, including those who succumbed to health issues afterward, as efforts toward full recovery continue in the hardest-hit areas.

Some 21,000 residents in Ishikawa Prefecture, which faces the Sea of Japan, remain evacuated or in temporary housing as of late December, with infrastructure restoration and the demolition of collapsed homes still incomplete.

The Ishikawa prefectural government held a ceremony in Wajima, one of the areas hardest hit by the earthquake, to offer condolences to the victims and pledge efforts toward reconstruction.

"There are many challenges left. To accomplish restoration and reconstruction efforts as soon as possible is the way to comfort the souls of the victims," Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said at the event.

He expressed his intention to revise laws concerning disaster relief and countermeasures in a bid to strengthen social welfare and promote government-private cooperation in devastated regions.

Those in attendance observed a moment of silence for the victims at 4:10 p.m., the same time the magnitude-7.6 quake occurred on New Year's Day last year. The region was also hit by torrential rains in September, hindering post-quake recovery efforts and increasing the number of evacuees.

"We are determined to create a future for a new Noto. We will devote all our efforts to pave the way for reconstruction," Ishikawa Gov. Hiroshi Hase said at the ceremony.

Residents gathered to watch the year's first sunrise early Wednesday on the coast near Mitsuke Island, a scenic, uninhabited rock island in Suzu that suffered a major landslide during the earthquake.

"It was a tough year, but it cheers me up to see the sun even a little bit," 74-year-old Sumiko Ikezaki, who lives in temporary housing, said as she put her hands together. "I hope that this year is a good one, I hope that there will be no earthquakes."

Meanwhile, a temporary altar was constructed at a shrine in Wajima that had been damaged by the disaster.

Kenzo Yamaji, 40, who works for a nonprofit corporation in the city that supports foreigners, visited the shrine and said, "I think we have seen some change toward reconstruction. I would like to continue supporting it."

Of the 504 fatalities reported as of Friday, 228 people in Ishikawa Prefecture died in the earthquake. The remaining 276 fatalities across Ishikawa, Niigata, and Toyama prefectures are believed to have resulted from deteriorating health conditions, in some cases linked to the stress of evacuation.

Some fatalities were also attributed to limited access to electricity and water, as well as disruptions to services at medical institutions, according to local authorities.

The death toll is expected to rise further, with around 200 cases awaiting review for recognition as quake-related deaths, according to relevant municipalities.

The quake caused more than 150,000 houses to fully or partially collapse across Ishikawa, Niigata, Toyama and Fukui prefectures.

All temporary housing for those affected was completed on Dec. 23 in Ishikawa Prefecture, but this was four months behind the initial schedule due to increased demand and delays caused by the September rains, the local government said.

The Ishikawa prefectural government has established 6,882 makeshift homes across 10 municipalities, housing 12,092 people. Of these, 64 percent reside in the cities of Wajima and Suzu.

The local economy of the region, known as a popular tourist destination for fresh seafood, hot spring spas and traditional artworks, including lacquerware, has also suffered. A historical marketplace in Wajima was devastated by a fire that destroyed around 240 buildings.

A total of 88 hotels and Japanese-style inns, or ryokan, in Ishikawa, were partially or fully collapsed, while 100 sightseeing facilities were damaged in Ishikawa, Toyama and Niigata prefectures, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.