Japan on Thursday held the first meeting of its panel tasked with reviewing guidelines on how companies and local governments should respond to emergency information on a possible megathrust earthquake in the Nankai Trough off the Pacific coast.
At the meeting, the expert panel at the Cabinet Office confirmed a plan to revise the guidelines by the end of August after considering ways to improve them, based on a draft revision presented by the government agency.
Nobuo Fukuwa, emeritus professor at Nagoya University, was appointed chair of the panel.
Japan issued its first Nankai Trough emergency information in August last year following a major quake off Miyazaki Prefecture, urging people to prepare for another potential big quake for a week while continuing their daily lives.
Some regions experienced confusion, with swimming beaches closed and accommodation reservations canceled. Affected local governments said they were at a loss over how to respond.
In light of these issues, the Cabinet Office plans to revise the guidelines to include examples of appropriate responses and clarify the roles of local governments.
The Cabinet Office also plans to include points of attention by category, including transportation, education and medical treatment, to help firms to consider what to do before earthquakes happen.
The expert panel will address specific issues and measures related to potential huge quakes that may happen directly beneath the Tokyo metropolitan area, as well as in the Nankai Trough and the Japan and Chishima trenches, also in the Pacific. It will also consider reviewing basic response plans for such temblors.
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