Sendai Earthquake- CASE STUDY

• Reducing the impact of earthquakes

  1. Emergency services are being trained to be more effective

  2. Schools, businesses and organisations practise drills

  3. 1st September each year is a National Disaster Prevention Day

  4. New buildings are built according to strict building codes

  5. Older buildings are being retrofitted to be stronger
• Earthquakes cannot be predicted
• Earthquake impact reduction measures

  • Emergency services training
  • Disaster drills
  • National Disaster Prevention Day
  • New buildings built to code
  • Retrofitting older buildings
• Short-term relief


  • Advanced warning of earthquake and tsunami
  • Pacific Tsunami warning centre warned coastal areas
  • 140,000 people evacuated from 20km radius around Fukushima power plant
• Long-term relief


  • Prefabricated housing set up in Sendai
  • Honshu's transportation & communication services partially restored
  • Government set up Agency to rebuild Tohoku area, reported to take 10 years
  • Debris from disaster removed by 2015
• Warnings

  • Advanced warning of the earthquake and Tsunami allowed people to get outside or reach higher ground
  • The Pacific Tsunami warning centre warned coastal areas in Japan and other areas around the pacific
• Short-term Relief


  • Rescue workers and the Japanese army were dispatched to help deal with the crisis
  • Government requested International Aid
  • Australia, China, NZ, India, South Korea and USA all sent search teams
  • Red Cross, Red Crescent and NGOs all provided support such as shelters
• Long-term Relief


  • Ten's of thousands of Prefabricated housing was set up in Sendai
  • Honshu's transportation & communication services were partially restored
  • In 2012 – the government set up an Agency to rebuild the Tohoku area, reported to take 10 years
  • By 2015 it was reported that the debris from the disaster had been removed