The only stadium purpose-built for the 2019 Rugby World Cup is set to open Sunday in the Iwate Prefecture port city of Kamaishi.

Built on the grounds of two schools that were badly damaged by the tsunami that caused such widespread destruction following the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, Kamaishi Unosumai Memorial Stadium will be one of the smallest stadiums ever used for rugby's flagship tournament.

But the emotional impact and long-term benefits of the new ground are immeasurable, as the city -- which saw 1,064 of its 39,400 citizens die in the disaster -- looks to rejuvenate itself.

"Some people initially disagreed with the stadium (being) built as there is still so much reconstruction of housing to be done," Takeshi Nagata said Friday. "But others saw it as the creation of hope at a time when everyone was down and there was no hope in the city."

The 35-year-old Nagata played and coached for local side Kamaishi Seawaves -- which evolved from the Nippon Steel side that won seven straight All-Japan Rugby Football Championships between 1979 and 1985 -- before becoming an official with the Kamaishi City Rugby World Cup headquarters.

"The World Cup is a once in a lifetime event and I wanted to contribute in some way," he said of his new role.

The stadium, Nagata explained, has a permanent capacity of 6,000 spectators, with 10,000 additional temporary seats set to be added for when the city hosts Fiji and Uruguay on Sept. 25, 2019, and for the game between the top African qualifier, either Namibia or Kenya, and the winner of November's four-team repechage on Oct. 13, 2019.

The stadium's permanent seats are made either from locally grown cedar wood or are recycled seats from Kumamoto Prefecture Athletic Stadium, the old National Stadium in Tokyo or Tokyo Dome.

The new stand has also been designed to help with some of the challenges nature presents in the area.

Water collected from the stadium roof is fed into two tanks built under the pitch with a combined storage of 220 tonnes.

The tanks supply fresh water to the stadium for use in watering the playing surface while acting as an emergency supply that can be utilized to fight the occasional forest fire in the area.

A forest fire also played a role in the stadium's construction as burned trees were used to make stadium seating, some even displaying charring as a result of the flames.

Local hotel owner Akiko Iwasaki was caught up in the tsunami and initially swept away by the mass of water before being rescued.

She has no doubt that building the stadium, which on Sunday hosts a number of events including a game between the Seawaves and Yamaha Jubilo, was the right thing to do.

"It has given us a sense of hope and a real door to the future," the 62-year-old said. "I really wanted Kamaishi to be a host of the Rugby World Cup to give the local children some hope. It also gives us a chance to share with people from overseas our way of life here."

(Akiko Iwasaki at her hotel in Kamaishi)