What has been seen from the death of 92 people

What was seen from the death of 92 people was 20:29 on November 14th

One month after heavy rain damage caused by Typhoon # 19. Ninety-two people died nationwide, and three remain missing.

As a disaster reporter, what did you tell me and what kind of call did you make to reduce the damage as much as possible?
We began investigating whether the victims could find out the challenges and lessons by examining the places and situations where they were damaged.

What I saw was two major issues: “the limits of hazard maps” and “how to stop society in the event of a disaster”.

(Typhoon No.19 Interview Group, Social Department Reporter Shinya Fujishima, Director of Network Press, Mototaka Tanaka)

* For the analysis, information as of November 12, 1980 was used.

Where 92 people died

"Check the hazards in your area based on the hazard map"

These are the words we have called many times before typhoons.

The hazard map is a disaster prevention map that shows where there is a risk of flooding or landslides. It is distributed by municipalities and published on the website, and it is an important material for understanding risks and judging evacuation.

Then, was the damage caused by the typhoon this time occurring at a place where risks were shown in advance on a hazard map, etc.?

In order to verify this, we gathered information through reporters who interviewed in various places, and decided to take a closer look with Professor Ushiyama, Professor of Shizuoka University, which specializes in disaster prevention.

The relationship between the deceased person and the sediment-related disaster hazard / inundation area

First, along with the place where 92 people died, there is a “land disaster hazard location” where there is a risk of a sediment disaster that will create a hazard map, and an “inundation assumption area” that indicates the inundation area when a river is flooded Overlaid above.

After that, we investigated the positional relationship between the place where the person died and the place where the risk was assumed, for 79 people who died due to flood and landslides.

70% are "within the expected range" 30% are "unexpected"

Then, 52 people, or 70%, died within the risk-predicted range, while 27 people, 30%, were not supposed to be landslide disaster hazard areas or inundation-proposed areas. I can see that I was dropping.

People who died in “unexpected” places
▽ Miyagi Prefecture 12 people,
▽ Six people in Fukushima Prefecture
▽ Gunma and Kanagawa prefectures,
▽ One person each in Nagano, Shizuoka and Iwate prefectures.

In Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures, there were many cases of damage around small and medium-sized rivers.
All Gunma Prefectures were victims of “earth and sand disasters” and were sacrificed due to the collapse of an unexpected slope.

Miyagi Marumorimachi 7 people in an “unexpected” place

Marumori Town, Miyagi Prefecture has the most deaths in unexpected places.
Of the 10 people who died in the town, 7 died in places where no risk was assumed.

The figure above shows the area around the Takeya district in the center of Marumoricho.
Although the Shinbu River, a tributary of the Abukuma River, was flooded, it was certainly outside the flooded area that the inhabitants lost their lives.

How did the residents of Marumoricho feel?

When I talked to the residents, “The water of the river that flows right next is usually about 2 meters wide and about 30 centimeters deep. There is no impression that there is a lot of water. "

It was outside the hazard map and so on.

Why isn't it supposed to be dangerous?

In fact, “Small and medium-sized rivers” are not subject to prior assumptions.
In the Flood Control Law, which prepares for flooding, the target of inundation areas is assumed to be rivers with a large basin area or rivers that have a large impact when flooding occurs.

According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, at least 43 rivers that account for 60% of the 71 rivers nationwide whose dyke broke down during this typhoon were not subject to inundation assumptions.

In Marumori Town, Miyagi Prefecture, small and medium-sized rivers such as the Shinkawa, Uchikawa, and Gofukuya Rivers, which are tributaries of the Abukuma River, were flooded, but they were not intended for flooding. For this reason, no risk was shown in advance.

Pay special attention to "terrain" ...

What should we do if risks are not shown in advance?

Prof. Ushiyama, who has been working with us, taught me that it is important to focus on “terrain”. The terrain that requires particular attention is the “lowland”.

"Lowland" means low land compared to the surroundings, altitude is not relevant. The flat land along the river is a typical lowland.

The place where the height is the same as the riverbank is "lowland" and there is a risk of flooding.

As a result of investigating 270 people who know the exact location of the damage among Prof. Ushiyama who died from flood damage that occurred between 1999 and last year, 251 people, or 93%, were damaged in the "lowlands" It is that.

In this typhoon No. 19, 17 people died from flood damage outside the “inundation area”. Of these, the 13 people whose locations were damaged in detail were found to be all damaged in the “lowlands”.

The site of Marumori Town, Miyagi Prefecture, is also low.

Prof. Ushiyama said, “The hazard map is a reference for evacuation, so the government should proceed with the maintenance. However, because there are many rivers, it takes time to maintain. For this reason, there are no hazard maps. But we need to pay attention to "terrain" and know the risks. "

Another challenge that we have seen

Another issue that has been revealed in this analysis.
That means that many people were sacrificed during work or while commuting.

A 75-year-old man who was heading to work to deliver a newspaper in Iitate-mura, Fukushima Prefecture, and a 58-year-old woman who was returning home after working at a food factory in Yamato-cho, Miyagi Prefecture, were both killed by floods. It has become.

About 15% are “working” “commuting”

In this analysis, we found that 13 people suffered from such “on the job” and “commuting / going home”, representing approximately 15% of the total.

In addition, 20 people were affected by the disaster while traveling outdoors, such as “evacuating” and “calling to evacuate”.

About this result, Professor Ushiyama
“If you are indoors, there is a possibility that you may have been saved, and I feel strongly that I cannot manage it. I want many people to know that the outdoors are very dangerous and the cars can be easily washed away. When it happens, companies need to think about how to prevent them from going to work or going home. "

Necessity to stop social activities during disasters

Of the 13 people who died during work and commuting and returning home, 12 were in Miyagi and Fukushima Prefectures.

In urban areas, there is a growing movement to temporarily suspend social activities, such as the company and school being closed due to the “planned suspension” of the railway.
As a result, the effect of reducing the number of people who act outdoors has been pointed out.

On the other hand, in regions where there are more travels by car, there may be aspects where it is difficult for a mechanism to stop social activities such as companies.

Companies need to proceed with the rules for going to work and returning home in the face of a disaster, and I feel that preparations to keep pace as a region have been a major issue.

Imagine the limits and the “what if” assumptions

In this disaster, 70% of those who died were killed in the hazard map where danger was pointed out.
The importance of knowing the risks that are known in advance and evacuating as soon as possible remains the same.

On top of that, the issue that Typhoon No. 19 posed was that “the assumptions are limited”.
National and local governments are required to make efforts to reduce “unexpected”, but we felt strongly that efforts to “know where you live” are essential.

I don't think it's okay, but what if a nearby river overflows? What if the cliff collapses? It is important to imagine that.

And we would like to think about what we can do on a daily basis, and how we should call attention when disaster strikes.

Analysis results by cause of death

▽ Flood damage ... 62 people (67%)
▽ Sediment disaster ... 17 people (18%)
▽ Sinking of the ship ... 7 (8%)
▽ Wind ... 3 people (3%)
▽ Accidents and related deaths ... 3 (3%)

Results of analysis Location and type of disaster

▽ Outdoor… 57 people (62%)
(Breakdown)-Flood damage: 41 (72%)
・ Sediment disasters: 4 (7%)
・ Wind: 3 people (5%)
・ Others: 9 (16%)
▽ Indoor ... 35 people (38%)
(Breakdown)-Flood damage: 21 (60%)
・ Sediment disasters: 13 people (37%)
・ Others: 1 person (3%)