The prefectural police and fire departments in Fukushima have started multilingual services aimed at non-Japanese speakers making emergency calls amid a rising number of foreign visitors in the run-up to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics.
On Dec. 1 the prefectural police began offering services in English, Chinese and Korean 24 hours a day. Calls made by foreign residents and visitors to the 110 emergency number — as well as to fixed phone lines at 251 police stations and police boxes — will be connected to a three-way call with an outside company offering interpretation services.
The authorities believe they will be able respond and react faster to crimes and traffic accidents reported by foreign residents.