Why do people go to snow January 23 22:00
A blizzard in the expected heavy snow.
Various organizations are calling for vigilance against low temperatures that are said to occur once every ten years.
But looking back, every time there was a heavy snow, the car got stuck, and there were tragedies in the snow.
Why do people go to danger?
It seems that the movement of the mind, which usually works for rest, is having an effect.
(Naoya Saito, Kaoru Hijikata, Network News Department / Ryuga Hiratsuka, Nara Station / Ryo Hashimoto, Good Morning Japan)
"I'm not kidding, I really do."
"This time it may be dangerous if it is not a school / company holiday
.
"
Voices were sent to the post one after another.
The post contains strong words about the possibility of “the coldest wave of the season,” “a wide area and a long period of time,” and “simultaneous road closures on both general roads and national roads.”
Similar calls were made by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and other expressway companies on SNS.
"We take the response at that time very seriously."
There are bitter memories of the past in the background.
Three years ago, about 2,100 cars were stranded on the Kan-Etsu Expressway for a maximum of 15 kilometers.
It took more than two full days to resolve the problem, and we had to go around the stranded car and refuel.
It seems that the transmission of strong words has come to do this as a lesson.
(East Japan Expressway Niigata Branch Office Public Relations Manager)
“This cold wave is expected to bring a rare heavy snowfall.
“Once in ten years”
The coldest of this winter expected after the 24th.
Heavy snowfall and blizzards are expected over a wide area, and there is a risk that the amount of snowfall will increase rapidly in a short period of time.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and the Japan Meteorological Agency issued an ``emergency announcement on heavy snowfall'' on the 23rd, calling for refraining from going out unnecessarily and urgently, saying that ``the temperature is expected to be as low as once in 10 years nationwide''.
"White darkness" and "10 years ago"
However, despite calls for vigilance, there have been repeated accidents and troubles caused by driving in heavy snow, and there have been cases where people's lives have been threatened.
Two years ago, during a heavy snowfall, a multiple accident involving about 60 cars and trucks occurred on the Tohoku Expressway in Osaki City, Miyagi Prefecture.
One man was killed and 24 were seriously injured.
At one point, about 140 cars were stuck for nearly 1 km, and one of the causes of the accident was "white out".
It is also called "white darkness" because it is a phenomenon in which strong winds blow up snow and cover the field of view with white, making it impossible to know the direction and topography in an instant.
In addition, since this weather situation is said to be "once in 10 years", many people on the Internet have said that they remembered the tragedy that occurred 10 years ago.
Ten years ago in March, Hokkaido was hit by a snowstorm due to a rapidly developing low pressure system, and nine people died.
Among them was a father who went missing while picking up his elementary school daughter in a light truck.
The next morning, the father and daughter were found on the side of the road about 300 meters away from the car, with the father covering her daughter in his arms.
Her daughter had mild frostbite, but her father was pronounced dead.
A friend of the parent and child was informed that the car had stopped working due to the blizzard. .
Also, in Niigata Prefecture, a woman in her 20s died in a car buried in the snow even in the record heavy snowfall that reached three times the average year in places centered on the Sea of Japan side last month. It is found.
Accidents in heavy snow are repeated.
3 biases why we head for the snow
Why do people sometimes go outside or go out by car even in situations where danger awaits them, such as heavy snow?
Experts in disaster prevention psychology say that there are three psychological quirks that humans have.
One is normalcy bias.
Even if something different from usual is happening, it is the movement of the mind that treats it as normal (the same as usual) and tries to keep the mind calm.
I can see the snow now, but it's not that big of a deal, and I try to feel relieved.
In daily life, it is an important movement to maintain a state of mind when something unusual happens, but in the event of a disaster, it can be dangerous.
Experts point out that this mental quirk appears when the snow isn't yet here.
(Professor Reo
Kimura, University of Hyogo)
It's easy for a 'normalcy bias' to occur
."
and optimism bias.
From my past experience, this time it's okay!
It's a movement of the heart that I think based on experience.
"The 'optimism bias' is to think that if you haven't been involved in a big injury or accident in your life so far, such as heavy snow or icy roads, then you'll probably be okay this time."
"It's a habit of thinking optimistically based on past experiences. Some people tend to think that way."
There is also another peculiarity of the idea called synchronicity bias.
It is the movement of the mind that conforms to the people around you, and the movement of the mind that when you are in a group, you take the same action as the people around you.
In daily life, this also leads to cooperativeness in order to get along well with many people, and there are times when people have different opinions.
However, in the event of a disaster, it is dangerous to think that it is safe because other cars are also driving in the snow. It is.
“When synchronicity bias kicks in, I sometimes think that other people are doing it, so I’m worried if I don’t do it with them. "
Based on these characteristics of human psychology, Professor Kimura advised that it is important to think that past experiences are useless in order to protect lives.
"This time we have a rare cold wave, so our experiences in everyday life may not be useful.
" In this way, we will take firm measures based on the mental crisis management of “this time, maybe”, and if we do not have to go out as much as possible, we will not go out as much as possible. I would like you to overcome
Weather conditions can change dramatically in a short amount of time.
It's okay now, it used to be okay, so everyone is going.
It is one of the important measures not to make yourself feel at ease thinking so.