Japan is Tsunami-Proof

[Captain Japan]

How Japan handles tsunami threat
BBC

As one of the world's most earthquake-prone nations, Japan has had considerable experience of tsunamis.

The very word is Japanese, and probably the most famous Japanese painting, by 18th Century artist Hokusai, depicts a tsunami passing by Mount Fuji.

So seriously does Japan take the tsunami threat that one university even has a specialist engineering faculty to study the natural effect.

There is also a Tsunami Warning Service, established in 1952, and run by the Japan Meteorological Society (JMA).

Six regional centres connected up to 300 sensors located across Japan's islands, including around 80 water-borne sensors, monitor seismic activity round the clock.

If an earthquake looks as if it has the potential to trigger a tsunami, the JMA issues an alert within three minutes of it being identified.
...snip...
Underpinning this cutting-edge warning system are strict new building laws to protect against tsunamis and quakes, and good disaster planning that have so far kept Japanese casualties from such natural disasters low for such a vulnerable nation.

And in other news...
Most municipalities admit they're not prepared for disasters
Mainichi

More than half of nearly 730 municipalities across the country surveyed by the Mainichi Shimbun have taken inadequate measures to prepare for disasters, according to the survey results.

The Mainichi Shimbun asked 728 municipalities -- cities across the country and Tokyo wards -- to rate how prepared for disasters they are in 16 categories such as quake-proof measures for buildings, prediction of damage caused by strong earthquakes and emergency medical services and rescue plans. The scale was from 1 to 4 with the 4 being the highest. Of them, 672, or 92.3 percent, responded.

After rating the municipalities' total disaster preparedness based on their respective total points, 371 municipalities either have only minimal preparations for disasters or have taken almost no disaster prevention measures.

[Taro Toporific]

I guess Japan is not totally "Tsunami-Proof", hee, hee....

Toyota drops 'Tsunami' name for sports car model
(CTV.ca) Jan 08
"Inside the Tsunami is a "tidal wave" of goodness."

[Captain Japan]

Japan inadequately prepared for tsunami
Archiveless Gomiuri Shimbun

Nearly 20 percent of breakwaters built along Japanese coasts at risk from tsunami are lower than the estimated height of waves that would hit the coasts in the event of tsunami, while the effectiveness of about 30 percent of such breakwaters has not even been tested, according to the results of a government survey.

The survey results also showed that 60 percent of breakwaters nationwide have not undergone earthquake-resistance tests.

The government has included an allocation for funds to be used to repair and improve social infrastructure, including breakwaters, in next fiscal year's budget. In the wake of a series of tsunami that caused devastating damage to countries facing the Indian Ocean, Japan recently began looking into additional measures against tsunami.

The survey was jointly conducted by the Construction and Transport Ministry and the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry between May and December.

According to the ministries, the length of coastline that requires protection against possible tsunami or high waves totals 15,065 kilometers of the nation's entire coastline of about 34,840 kilometers. To protect against possible disasters, municipalities and other concerned authorities have taken some measures to safeguard 11,000 kilometers of coastline by building 2,900 kilometers of breakwaters and concrete seawalls 6,100 kilometers long.

The government requires that a breakwater be built higher than the maximum height of tsunami that can be expected.

In the survey, however, only 52 percent of the breakwaters, totaling 7,919 kilometers in length, met the requirement, while 17 percent of them, extending 2,650 kilometers, failed to do so.

Wakayama and Mie prefectures are predicted to be hit hard if the predicted powerful East Nankai and Nankai earthquakes occur. If the quakes occur, those prefectures would be struck by tsunami up to 10 meters high. But 57 percent and 53 percent of breakwaters in Wakayama and Mie prefectures, respectively, would not provide adequate protection because they are too low.

The survey results also found that research and tests have not been conducted on 29 percent of coastlines totaling 4,496 kilometers in length in other prefectures, including Niigata, Tottori, Saga, Nagasaki and Kumamoto. Also, there are 6,571 water gates across the nation that likely would suffer tsunami damage. Of them, 1,166 would not be able to close completely before a tsunami hit, while it is not known whether 3,628 gates could be closed in time.

Among 991 city, town and village governments that possibly will be hit by tsunami in the future, only 122 such municipalities have created hazard maps estimating disaster damage, according to the findings of the survey.

Furthermore, 364 municipalities had no experience in conducing emergency drills in anticipation of tsunami.

As for another natural disaster--earthquakes--33 percent of sea breakwaters, totaling 3,632 kilometers long, have been confirmed earthquake-resistant, while 7 percent of them with a total length of 768 kilometers are not strong enough to withstand earthquakes. Sixty percent of the breakwaters, totaling about 6,600 kilometers in length, have not yet been checked for earthquake resistance.

[kurohinge1]

Japan inadequately prepared for tsunami

... Nearly 20 percent of breakwaters built along Japanese coasts at risk from tsunami are lower than the estimated height of waves that would hit the coasts in the event of tsunami, while the effectiveness of about 30 percent of such breakwaters has not even been tested ...

If Aikido teaches that it takes much less power to let a force flow around you, like water, than try and stop it, perhaps this is the answer:



Japan had plenty of these lying around 60 years ago -



Maybe they weren't yellow, but certainly 2-3 of them were in that harbour shown above!

Anyway, just give coastal dwellers one per house, and tell them to keep a couple of bentos ready for when they have to use it.

The SDF should have no trouble finding them again later, given their hardware and the practice they've had chasing Chinese subs.