Preparing for a Disaster
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- What to Do Before a Disaster Occurs
- What to Do If a Disaster Occurs
What to Do If a Disaster Occurs
1
When a big disaster occurs
- The electricity, water and gas supply will stop and you will not be able to use electrical appliances, water and gas.
- Roads and railways will be cut off as well as public transportation and distribution of goods will be disrupted.
- The phone and internet connection will be limited so it will be difficult to contact family members.
- Evacuation centers will be set up quickly at nearby schools and community centers.
2
Gather and obtain information
False information will spread. Get accurate multilingual information from government websites, the tv and apps.
News Websites

Weather Information

Stay Safe with NHK
WORLD-JAPAN
3
Evacuate
After checking the safety of your surroundings, evacuate to a safe place. If you don’t know any safe places, ask the people around you.
4
Contact your family, friends and your country’s embassy
You can contact people using a disaster message board service. Phone and internet connection will become limited during a disaster but pay phones will still be working.
Disaster Emergency Message Dial 171 | |
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Disaster Message Board Web 171 | |
KDDI (AU) Disaster Message Board Service | |
SoftBank Disaster Message Board/ Disaster Voice Messaging Service | |
Y!Mobile Disaster Message Board Service |
5
Confirm the safety of your friends and family
You can use the internet to confirm people’s safety.
Google Person Finder
https://www.google.org/personfinder/japan?lang=en"J-anpi" All-Japan Safety Confirmation Portal for Disaster
https://anpi.jp/top?lang=en&enc=Zp-NLUq5zZr-qPafG3_bug6
Apply for a disaster victim certificate (risai shomeisho)
This document certifies to the local municipality the extent of damage caused by the disaster. You can use it to be exempted from various expenses as well as to apply for benefits.