Current flood warning system in Japan and its effectiveness in mobilizing evacuation: Lessons from case studies

Guangwei Huang, PhD; Juan Fan

doi:10.5055/jem.0757

Authors

Guangwei Huang, PhD
Juan Fan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5055/jem.0757

Keywords:

flood warning, evacuation, Chikuma River, Kuma River, SWOT

Abstract

An effective flood warning system is crucial for successful flood management. Flood warning systems have been developed in many countries across the world. However, scientific literature on flood warning systems has been mainly focused on technical capacity building, and the effectiveness of warning systems in mobilizing evacuation was much understudied. Japan is a country with a long history of fighting against flood disasters; the evaluation of its practices in providing flood warnings and the effectiveness are certainly important for further flood research development in Japan, and sharing the experience and lessons with the rest of the world will contribute to flood damage reduction on a global scale. Following this line of thinking, this article is intended to present a clear and concise picture of the current flood warning system in Japan, which has been poorly documented up until now. It is also aimed at providing a performance assessment for the flood warning system through case study approach and the use of Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) model. Through analyses, the pros and cons of the current flood warning system in Japan are highlighted, and the directions for further development and refinement are explained.

Author Biographies

Guangwei Huang, PhD

School of Global Environmental Studies, Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan

Juan Fan

School of Global Environmental Studies, Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan

References

Tate E, Cauwenberghs K: An innovative flood forecasting system for the Demer basin: A case study. Int J River Basin Manag. 2005; 3(4): 1-5.

Thielen J, Bartholmes J, Ramost M-H, et al.: The European flood alert system—Part 1: Concept and development. Hydrol Earth Syst Sci. 2009; 13: 125-140.

UNEP: Early warning systems: A state of the art analysis and future directions. Environ Dev. 2012; 4: 136-171.

Perera D, Agnihotri J, Seidou O, et al.: Identifying societal challenges in flood early warning systems. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2020; 51: 101794.

Acosta-Coll M, Ballester-Merelo F, Martinez-Peiró M, et al.: Real-time early warning system design for pluvial flash floods—A review. Sensor. 2018; 18(7): 2255.

Chowdhury R: Consensus seasonal flood forecasts and warning response system (FFWRS): An alternate for nonstructural flood management in Bangladesh. Environ Manag. 2005; 35: 716-725.

Krzhizhanovskaya VV, Shirshov GS, Melniko NB, et al.: Flood early warning system: Design, implementation and computational modules. Procedia Comput Sci. 2011; 4: 106-115.

Jain SK, Pankaj Mani P, Jain SL, et al.: A brief review of flood forecasting techniques and their applications. Int J River Basin Manag. 2018; 16: 329-344. DOI: 10.1080/15715124.2017.1411920.

Alfieri L, Salamon P, Pappenberger F, et al.: Operational early warning systems for water-related hazards in Europe. Environ Sci Policy. 2012; 21: 35-49.

Kuller M, Pinto F, Schonholzer K, et al.: Effective risk communication for early flood warning in West-Africa. In Paper Presented at the EGU General Assembly. 2020. DOI: 10.5194/egusphereegu2020-9425.

Hayden M, Drobot S, Radil S, et al.: Information sources for flash flood warnings in Denver, CO and Austin, TX. Environ Hazards. 2007; 7(3): 211-219.

Macherera M, Chimbari MJ: A review of studies on community based early warning systems. J Disaster Risk Stud. 2016; 8(1): a206.

Bowen GA: Document analysis as a qualitative research method. Qual Res J. 2009; 9(2): 27-40.

Fan J, Huang G: Evaluation of flood risk management in Japan through a recent case. Sustainability. 2020; 12(13): 5357. DOI: 10.3390/su12135357.

Huang G: Are cities safer than before? Front Sustain Cities. 2021; 3. DOI: 10.3389/frsc.2021.713300.

Nagano City Office: Available at https://www.city.nagano.nagano.jp/soshiki/kikibousai/455926.html. Accessed February 1, 2022.

Kyushu Disaster Database: Available at http://saigairireki.qscpua2.com/kumamoto/. Accessed February 1, 2022.

Yatsushiro River and National Highway Office: Available at https://kumariver-r0207archive.jp/overview/detail/index-chapter2.html. Accessed March 1, 2022.

Japan Meteorology Agency: Available at https://www.jma.go.jp/jma/kishou/know/bosai/alertlevel.html. Accessed February 1, 2022.

Cabinet Office of Japan: Guideline for evacuation information. Available at https://www.bousai.go.jp/index-e.html. Accessed February 1, 2022.

Huang G: A comparative study on flood management in China and Japan. Water. 2014; 6(9): 2821-2829.

Disaster Information for River: Available at https://www.river.go.jp/index. Accessed March 1, 2022.

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Available at https://www.mlit.go.jp/river/shishin_guideline/bousai/saigai/suii/. Accessed February 1, 2022.

Nagano City: Available at https://www.city.nagano.nagano.jp/soshiki/kikibousai/455926.html. Accessed February 1, 2022.

Aritomo H, Nakayasu M, Nukai T: Analysis of the relationship between evacuation behavior and information provision among residents in typhoon Hagibis-affected area (Northern part of Nagano City) using a Questionnaire Survey. In Proceedings of River Information Symposium, Tokyo, Japan, 2020.

Yatsushiro River and National Highway Office: Records of the Kuma river flood disaster caused by the heavy rainfall in July 2020. Available at http://www.qsr.mlit.go.jp/yatusiro. Accessed December 1, 2021.

The Nishinippon Shimbun: 2020. Available at https://www.nishinippon.co.jp/item/n/632650/. Accessed December 1, 2021.

Kumamoto Daily News: 2021. Available at https://kumanichi.com/articles/49689. Accessed December 1, 2021.

Asahi Shimbun Digital: 2020. Available at https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASNB266TLNB1TIPE00X.html. Accessed December 1, 2021.

Huang G: Enhancing dialogue between flood risk management and road engineering sectors for flood risk reduction. Sustainability. 2018; 10: 1773.

Available at https://kumariver-r0207archive.jp/. Accessed December 1, 2021.

Kyushu Economic Research Center: Social and economic impacts of heavy rainfall in July 2020—part 4: Analysis of evacuation using positional information of smart phones. 2020 (in Japanese).

Ushiyama M, Yokomaku S, Kainuma M: Investigation of heavy rainfall disaster evacuation behavior in Oyama town, Shizuoka prefecture on September 8, 2010. J Jpn Soc Civil Eng. 2012; 68(4): 1093-1098 (in Japanese).

Sekiya N: Disaster information and evacuation behavior in Joso City under Kanto-Tohoku heavy rainfall disaster in September 2015: The actual conditions of evacuation behavior and information acquisition. In 15th Symposium on Urban Flood Disaster, 2016 (in Japanese).

Tanaka A, Ichizawa J, Miyagawa Y, et al.: A survey for residents’ behavior affected by a torrential rain: A case study from the town of Sayo in Hyogo Prefecture in 2009. Res Surv Rep Inform Stud Univ Tokyo. 2011; 27: 49-99 (in Japanese).

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism: Available at https://www.mlit.go.jp/river/sabo/pdf/190124chikubousai.pdf. Accessed December 1, 2021.

Takagi A, Sugiura S, Mori H, et al.: An analysis of resident evacuation behavior in the July 2018 heavy rainfall disaster—Case study of Gihu Prefecture. J Disaster Sci Manag. 2019; 38: 133-151 (in Japanese).