Research on Emergency Planning of Local Governments after Hanshin-Awaji Great Earthquake

1997 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary

• Project/Area Number: 08610180
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: 社会学(含社会福祉関係)
• Research Institution: Nara Women's University
• Principal Investigator: NODA Takashi Nara Women's University, Faculty of Human life and Environment, Associate Professor, 生活環境学部, 助教授 (50189403)
• Project Period (FY): 1996 – 1997
• Keywords: Disaster Prevention / Dissemination Systems of Disaster-Information / Local Emergency Management Planning / Disaster Sociology

Research Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the local governments' preparedness of the dissemination systems of disaster informations. The research results can be classified into (1) the measurement of preparedness at prefectural level, (2) the use of media (including new media), (3) supplying the living informations for habitants, (4) consideration for disaster weakeners, (5) expectation of habitants' behaviors (panic, rumor and so on), (6) planning of one-stop-center for victims, and (7) interorganizational coordinations.
The following are a few notable findings :
1. Most of municipal offices did not improve a plan about the media use. They depend mostly on the wireless public adress system, public adress cars or sirens. It is suggested that the serious information lack will occur again if a disaster occurs somewhere.
2. Municipals with large population size tend to, however, improve the plan about the dissemination of living informations in reconstruction period in detail. In spite of them, they also afraid of occursions of panic or rumor among their residents.
3. There are only 2.5% municipals which had already equipped the Information Centers for Residents (Chiki Joho Station) based on the new concept in Basic Protection Plan against Disasters (Bosai Kihon Keikaku) planned two years before. Moreover, they replace their "center" with existing equipment (the wireless public adress system, schools, public halls and so on).
4. About a half of municipals answered that they expected some leaders of their residents to play an important role in communication with their offices. But also they did not put the training to make their expectation comes true into effort.
These results lead to the conclusion that almost municipals in Japan had not improved their emergency management plan for their residents.