I have next to no exposure to natural disasters of any kind. Thus, you can imagine my anxiety when I decided to study in Japan–one of the most natural disaster-ridden countries in the world. In my half-year stay here alone, I’ve already experienced a handful of earthquakes (waking up to what felt like a swaying building was something else), intense heat waves and historic typhoons.
The most recent of the latter being Typhoon Hagibis, the strongest typhoon to hit Japan in over 50 years. At first, I wasn’t aware of just how serious the approaching typhoon was until I started receiving a ton of emergency messages from both my school and the government.
The air surrounding this typhoon was different from the one around Typhoon Faxai, which had smashed through Japan just over a month ago. It was quiet and subtle, but I could tell that everyone was in a panic. Understanding the gravity of the situation, I stayed indoors for three days as advised.
Stock up on food and water
Photos taken the night before the typhoon
We were warned that water and electricity might be cut off, so we did what any self-preserving human being would do: we stocked up on food and water. And we did this quickly.
If you know a typhoon is approaching, do this as soon as possible. The shelves at supermarkets can empty out at warp speed in such an event. You really don’t want to be that one person without any emergency food supplies and or water to drink, flush toilets and bathe in.
Another picture of how desperate the situation was: On the day of Typhoon Hagibis itself, my friend witnessed a Japanese customer attack a convenience store worker for not allowing the former into the store. The reason? The store was due to close at 1pm that day, and they had stopped letting people in at 12:45pm.
Shut your doors and windows
This one pretty much goes without saying. Close your doors and windows so as to not allow the wind in. If your windows aren’t shatterproof, you can try reinforcing them with tape, then close the curtains to lessen the possibility of getting hit by flying shards of glass should your window(s) break.
Do your best to stay away from windows. You never know; something heavy might smash through them.
Make sure you have an emergency kit at home
The best preparation of all is one that is done way in advance. Keep an emergency kit at home in case a natural disaster hits; this way, you won’t have to worry about stocks at supermarkets and stores running out when a disaster actually approaches.
Here’s what your emergency kit should contain:
- A flashlight
- Batteries
- Clothes and a towel
- Lighter and matches
- Medicine and a first aid kit
- Portable radio
- Personal documents
- Small change (including 10-yen coins that can be used at a public phone)
- Non-perishable food
- Water
Another thing worth considering to buy: a portable gas stove. If your electricity/gas is cut off, you can at least cook.
Charge up your electronics
Immediately after buying food and storing water in my bathtub, I charged up all of my electronics. This included my laptop, cellphone and power banks (luckily, I had recently bought one that can charge cellphones up to seven times. Handy in an emergency).
Stay tuned for emergency announcements
An emergency alert from that day
I really have to say, I was extremely impressed by the Japanese emergency system that day. Emergency announcements were issued quite frequently via cellphone alerts, with many of them being about new shelters they had opened to the public.
The only drawback was that these announcements were in Japanese. Which isn’t really convenient if you don’t understand Japanese.
Check Japan Meteorological Agency for announcements in English. You can also get almost real-time updates on it. Another thing worth checking out is this app called Safety Tips, which was developed under the supervision of the Japan Tourism Agency. It offers updates, emergency warnings, safety tips, etc on a myriad of natural disasters in 12 languages.
Don’t go outside
Don’t. Just don’t. When Typhoon Hagibis barreled through my neighbourhood, I was shocked because it sounded like missiles launching. Which was so crazy to me because I knew it was just the wind (you know, terrifyingly… deadly wind).
You really don’t want to be in the middle of all that.
Bring your things in
Further ensure your safety by bringing your things inside. These things include stuff like flower pots, laundry drying racks, watering cans, etc. Anything that can be picked up by the wind and smashed through your window.
Honestly, just bring everything in.
If you live close to water, evacuate
Don’t evacuate when danger is directly upon you. If you live in a high-risk area (in this case, close to water like the sea, a river or a dam), evacuate in advance. Pay attention to the emergency announcements; they’ll let you know which shelters are closest to you.
Here’s another one: if you live at a place that has a risk of experiencing landslides, evacuate.
Photos taken right after Typhoon Hagibis
Fortunately, my area was one of the lucky ones, as it had sustained very little damage from the typhoon. The only damages I’m aware of are the two pictured in the slideshow above. Other than that, we had no power or water cuts, and our trains were running again as usual the next day, albeit with multiple delays.
Here’s to hoping its luck will hold up for at least a couple more years.
