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The FPCJ and Shizuoka Prefecture jointly planned a press tour covering the 2015 Shizuoka Prefecture, Yaizu City and Fujieda City Joint Disaster Training, which is one of the largest disaster training events in Japan. Ten journalists from six countries and regions (England, France, Russia, Kazakhstan, China and Taiwan) visited Shizuoka. However, the training event was canceled due to bad weather, as lightning and heavy rain advisories were issued in the region. Some of the journalists visited the Shizuoka Prefecture Disaster Prevention Center as an alternative tour.

Click here for the original tour details

The Shizuoka Prefecture Disaster Prevention Center is a facility for citizens to gain the knowledge and awareness to protect themselves from disasters such as earthquakes and tsunami. It was established in 1989. Guided by Mr. Akira Nishii, the center’s Education Director, journalists learned about the mechanism and the threat of tsunami through models and videos, and felt a shindo 6-upper (JMA seismic intensity scale) quake at the earthquake experience section. They also learned of the importance of securing furniture and having a stock of food and water at all times. The journalists asked questions such as, “Japanese people can be prepared through disaster training events and other methods, but what is being done to prepare or warn foreign tourists for possible disasters?” or “Is there any possibility of Mt. Fuji erupting?”