The Great East Japan Earthquake, which occurred on March 11, 2011, is considered one of the worst natural disasters in modern Japanese history. The magnitude of the earthquake, the height of the tsunami, and the number of casualties far exceeded all prior expectations. Given the scale of the disaster, the number of casualties was relatively low. This was in large part thanks to a well-developed disaster management system, as both structural (e.g., seawalls and breakwaters) and non-structural measures (e.g., evacuation drills) were in place. However, the aforementioned measures had been intended for a much smaller scenario and were oftentimes insufficient. They created a false sense of security among residents, which negatively affected evacuation efforts and consequently contributed to a rise in casualties. Japan’s disaster preparedness system underwent major changes as a direct result of the lessons learned during the Great East Japan Earthquake. One of the most important was a conceptual shift towards preparedness for the worst-case scenario. Furthermore, the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami greatly contributed to a general raise in disaster awareness and preparedness across the entirety of Japan. The first part of this thesis analyses the impact of the measures that were in use during the Great East Japan Earthquake and their impact on the number of casualties. The second part focuses on the impact of this natural disaster on Japanese countermeasures and disaster preparedness, particularly in the event of a tsunami.
|
