The Great East Japan Earthquake and Fukushima nuclear crisis were unparalled disasters, but people in and around Shizuoka Prefecture fear the ultimate catastrophe — the eruption of Mount Fuji — may be looming.
"If Mount Fuji were to erupt, the consequences will be felt in the Kanto region and beyond," Hideo Ogawa, head of Shizuoka Prefecture's disaster management department, said during a meeting held by the Cabinet Office in June on the possibility of such calamity. "This is an issue that requires surrounding prefectures to collaborate and take prompt measures."
The meeting, attended by approximately 60 organizations, including government bodies as well as officials from Shizuoka, Kanagawa and Yamanashi prefectures, concluded that studies on possible evacuation routes in the surrounding area should start in January.