Photo/Illutration Removal work being carried out on July 4 on roads made impassable from mud and debris left by a landslide in Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture (Yusuke Fukudome)

A huge typhoon in 1958 caused the Kanogawa river, which runs through the Izu Peninsula, to flood and burst its banks. The water's force triggered flash floods and mudflows, killing many local residents.

A doctor at a medical facility in the Tsukigase district in the river's upper reaches who was well versed in meteorological phenomena led some 30 patients and staff members at the facility in an early evacuation, saving their lives. The episode has been handed down for decades as the “lesson of Tsukigase.”

I respect the doctor for his quick decision, but I myself feel quite uncertain whether I would be able to decide on evacuating so quickly without hesitation. I did not have an accurate understanding of the new evacuation information system introduced in May.

The term “hinan kankoku” (evacuation recommendation), which was frequently issued under the old system, has been removed from the new one.  The terms to define the five alert levels have been revised. Level 1 refers to “early alert information” and Level 2 represents heavy rain, flood and storm surge advisories.

Level 3 requires evacuation of elderly and other vulnerable people, while Level 4 triggers “evacuation instruction.” Level 5 is defined as a situation that requires measures to secure “emergency safety” since safe evacuation is no longer possible.

As July began, a month prone to disasters due to seasonal heavy rain, torrential rains pounded the Tokai and Kanto regions. For the first time, a Level 5 warning was issued under the new system.

A massive landslide occurred in Atami, a seaside resort town in Shizuoka Prefecture. An Asahi Shimbun reporter covering the situation there described the terrible trail of destruction left by the landslide.

Futons and vending machines covered with mud were among the items scattered along the road. Fire engines were moving around in the area. Under the heavily overcast sky, the entire picture of the disaster was still unclear.

Looking back, the term hinan kankoku was first written into a new law in 1961. The measure was adopted following the devastating Isewan Typhoon that struck Japan in 1959, the year after the Kanogawa Typhoon hit the nation. Thousands of people were killed in the Isewan Typhoon as they failed to escape from the disaster.

The evacuation information system has been reformed repeatedly in the ensuing years in response to severe damage caused by heavy rain.

To prevent tragic casualties in rain disasters, it is vital to examine how the new warning system worked.

Questions that need to be clarified include whether the new system was widely known and understood by local residents, and if the local governments issued appropriate and timely warnings.

--The Asahi Shimbun, July 4

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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