Tag - disaster

 
 

DISASTER

Any mix of the above foods that fit your dietary needs and preferences will make for filling and nutritious meals during an emergency.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Mar 9, 2024
Don’t let the next quake catch you (or your stomach) off guard
There’s a hidden threat in the days of limited power and bare grocery store shelves that follow a natural disaster: nutritional deficiencies.
Located in Ehime Prefecture at the base of the Cape Sada Peninsula, the Ikata Nuclear Power Plant lies about 45 kilometers from the town of Saganoseki within the city of Oita.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 7, 2024
Court rejects class action suit opposing nuclear plant in Ehime
Local residents in Oita, less than 50 kilometers from the facility, had called into question the safety of the plant during natural disasters.
An anti-seismic reinforced building at the Keiju Medical Center in Nanao, Ishikawa Prefecture, suffered broken pipes and water leakage following a New Year's Day earthquake.
JAPAN / Society / Regional voices: Chubu
Mar 4, 2024
Hospitals in Japan slow to adopt seismic isolation in their buildings
Facilities severely hit by the New Year's Day quake have not been able to resume surgeries and other medical services.
Residents of Otsuchi, Iwate Prefecture, take part in an evacuation drill in March 2021.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 1, 2024
More than decade after 2011 quake, Japan still slow to compile evacuation plans
The nation has failed to make progress in crafting plans to help evacuate elderly people and people with disabilities in the event of natural disasters.
Japan Airlines has kicked off an unmanned drone service to deliver goods and medical supplies in the remote town of Setouchi.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 29, 2024
Japan Airlines starts drone service in remote areas for disasters
The carrier is working with local authorities in the town of Setouchi, a tiny inlet in Okayama Prefecture that's home to 8,000 residents.
A plan is being considered to transfer residents and tourists from the Sakishima islands via Kagoshima and Fukuoka airports in the event of a Taiwan contingency.
JAPAN
Feb 28, 2024
Japan mulls Taiwan contingency evacuation routes for remote islands
The envisioned evacuation plans will be drawn up by prefectural governments in fiscal 2024.
Visnu CEO Ryosuke Chiba explains an AI-equipped security camera his company is developing for the city of Kamaishi, Iwate Prefecture, on Feb. 22.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 27, 2024
Japan firms look to AI to bolster disaster prevention and mitigation
Tools are being developed to focus on getting timely information to the relevant parties to facilitate evacuation.
Hideo Shimoju points to a possible site that his fellow neighbors may relocate to. Such relocations have happened before, but not preemptively.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / Longform
Feb 24, 2024
In disaster-prone Japan, some communities consider major moves
Rural communities are considering collective relocation as a means to deal with worsening climate disasters.
A man pours water into a plastic tank at an evacuation shelter in the city of Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Feb. 1.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Feb 23, 2024
Noto quake highlights aging water systems in depopulating areas
Nearly 22,000 homes in Ishikawa Prefecture are still without water, and the shortage has sparked debate on how to maintain services in depopulating areas.
An evacuee keeps himself warm around a heater at an evacuation center in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in January.
JAPAN
Feb 19, 2024
70% of areas at risk of tsunami have not run winter shelter drills
Estimates show that a tsunami following a Japan Trench quake could result in as many as 42,000 deaths from hypothermia.
People gather at a park in the city of Rikuzentakata in Iawate Prefecture to pray on March 11 last year, the 12th anniversary of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 12, 2024
Disabled account for over 20% of 2010s Japan disaster-linked deaths
The figures are particularly high when compared with the proportion of disabled people in the population, which the central government estimates at 9%.
People sort relief supplies, including sanitary napkins, diapers and baby formula, in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Sunday, over a month after a New Year's Day quake hit the area.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 5, 2024
Emergency maternity and baby supplies lacking in parts of Japan
The study showed that while 82.5% of municipalities stocked sanitary napkins, only 11.9% kept underwear for women.
The Shika nuclear plant in Ishikawa Prefecture on Jan. 4, three days after a major earthquake struck the area.
JAPAN
Feb 3, 2024
Nuclear emergency guidelines to be reviewed after Noto quake
Of the 11 national or prefectural roads in Ishikawa that would be used as evacuation routes in the area, seven suffered significant damage.
The Shika nuclear power plant in Ishikawa Prefecture.
JAPAN
Feb 3, 2024
Noto quake exceeded projections of nuclear plant operator
The quake caused a transformer for the No. 1 reactor and another for the No. 2 reactor to stop functioning due to issues that included oil leakage.
The rubble of a house that collapse due to the New Year's Day earthquake, in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture
JAPAN
Feb 3, 2024
Central Japan cities hit hard by quake had high rate of old homes
In Suzu, 65% of residences were built before 1981 when the country's seismic standards were significantly upgraded.
A woman offers flowers for victims of the New Year's Day earthquake near the morning market in the city of Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Thursday. Most buildings in the market were burned down in a fire that followed the quake.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2024
One month after Noto quake, challenges remain in restoration effort
About 14,000 people are still living at evacuation shelters as officials race to repair infrastructure in the region.
A construction vehicle is seen near a steaming lava flow following a volcanic eruption on the edge of Grindavik, Iceland.
WORLD / Society
Feb 1, 2024
Iceland prepares for a future of increased volcanic activity
Icelanders are working to build dykes to protect homes from lava flows, with engineers fine-tuning how tall and steep the barriers should be.
Rescue workers look for missing people in collapsed houses in the aftermath of the  earthquake that struck Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, and the surrounding areas on Jan. 1.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 30, 2024
No one left behind: Japan needs to work on its multicultural disaster response
The Noto earthquake has put into relief, once again, the need to cater disaster responses and preparedness to everyone, including foreigners.
A drill simulating a ballistic missile launch is held at the Higashinakano Station on the Toei Oedo Line on Jan. 15.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 30, 2024
Tokyo to create underground missile shelter in Azabu-Juban station
The move comes amid heightened geopolitical tensions, with Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike highlighting the "threat of ballistic missiles."
The Instant House's pointed roof prevents snow accumulation, while a side slot allows power cables to be pushed inside for lighting and heaters.
LIFE / Style & Design / ON: DESIGN
Jan 27, 2024
Innovative designs contribute to earthquake disaster relief
Smartly designed products can't solve all of the Noto Peninsula's post-quake problems, but they might be able to help.

Longform

When trying to trace your lineage in Japan, the "koseki" is the most important form of document you'll encounter.
Climbing the branches of a Japanese family tree