With Japan, We Prepare Together

International Medical Corps and the Association for Aid and Relief (AAR) Japan continue to partner with each other to provide local Japanese non-profit organizations with the knowledge needed to increase their capacity to support People with Disabilities (PWDs) in the aftermath of an emergency. Special programs for PWDs focusing on disaster preparedness are very important in Japan, because the mortality rate for PWDs was more than double that of the average person during the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Given this startling figure, International Medical Corps and AAR Japan are working to help ensure PWDs are better prepared to respond effectively to a disaster, wherever they may find themselves at the time.

Since disaster preparedness advice in Japan is often directed at the general public without taking into account the particular vulnerabilities of PWDs, it is difficult for them to turn general disaster preparedness advice into an actionable emergency plan without additional support. One of International Medical Corps’ and AAR’s aims is to increase the resilience of PWDs by giving them both the material tools and knowledge to manage risk and take care of themselves in times of disasters. Building upon lessons learned while working with the Iwaki Jiritsu Seikatsu Center (a local non-profit organization supporting PWDs in Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture) International Medical Corps and AAR Japan presented a disaster preparedness program at the Waiwai Workshop focused on helping PWDs in a future disaster situation.  

The Waiwai Workshop is a non-profit facility that runs a vocational training workshop for PWDs in Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture. Mr. Masae Igari, the workshop’s director, and his staff strongly believe in supporting the independence of PWDs, and trainees here assemble light switches, high-end ballpoint pens, and handcrafts such as key-chains. This work provides an opportunity for PWDs to learn valuable skills while earning a steady wage, which fosters a sense of accomplishment and builds self-confidence. Currently, 24 PWDs are employed at the workshop and generally work from 8 in the morning until 5 in the evening, although some individuals have shorter shifts depending on their stamina and capabilities. The majority of the disabled workers have intellectual disabilities and the remaining individuals have psychological and/or physical disabilities.

The Waiwai Workshop had first-hand experience with large-scale disaster when the Great East Japan Earthquake struck in March 2011. The subsequent tsunami flooded the first floor of the original workshop building to a height of three feet. In order to escape the flood waters, Waiwai staff members used a rope to lead everyone out of the building and up the street, in complete darkness, to shelter at a shrine located on top of a nearby hill. During the first month of the town’s recovery period, Mr. Igari opened his home to four staff members and eight workers.

The damage to the workshop was very extensive. Flooding from the tsunami destroyed all of the equipment on the first floor, and goods from a neighboring home improvement store were swept into the workshop by the waves, including fertilizer that leaked out from ripped bags and seeped into the floor of the facility. To make matters worse, the ground beneath the building sank by 11 inches. The building had to be torn down entirely and the ground under the new foundation was raised by 20 inches. The building was then reconstructed on top of the new, raised foundation.

AAR Japan was instrumental in the reconstruction of the facility, bringing in the majority of much-needed funding, facilitating the logistics, and ensuring that the construction work was done according to building standards. The reconstructed building incorporated a number of improvements in terms of its accessibility as well as emergency preparedness. Height differences between floors were significantly reduced, a ramp was installed at the entrance, and a handrail was installed on the staircase. In case of emergency, the workers can now quickly get out of the building through one of three exits.  

On March 7, 2014, International Medical Corps and AAR Japan conducted disaster preparedness training and distributed emergency evacuation kits to a total of 42 individuals (28 PWDs and 14 other staff members) of the Waiwai Workshop. International Medical Corps’ Country Representative Yumi Terahata, AAR project coordinators Atsushi Naoe and Masayuki Okada, and Katsuhiko Kyono from Iwate Social Welfare Council conducted basic training to increase the workers’ knowledge about the hazards present during a disaster and what to do when those hazards occur. This training utilized an emergency preparedness manual that Iwate Social Welfare Council had created specifically for PWDs.

During the training session, International Medical Corps and AAR Japan demonstrated how to use the items in the emergency kits. Each kit was packed into a backpack and included 30 essential items, including: drinking water, non-perishable food, a first aid kit, a hand-crank flashlight/radio/siren, a basic hygiene kit, disposable toilets, an emergency blanket, an inflatable plastic sleeping mattress, etc. Further, because each emergency kit must also be custom-tailored by each individual to meet their particular needs (such as prescription medication, emergency contact information, and the like), possibilities for additional items were also discussed.

After the training, Mr. Igari said, “We are very happy with this preparedness training and grateful for the emergency kits. Up until now, we were too overwhelmed with dealing with the aftermath of the last disaster that we couldn’t spare the time to think about dealing with future dangers. Now that it’s been almost a year since we moved into our new building, I feel we’re able to breathe a little. We were just starting to discuss amongst ourselves how we need to be prepared for future disasters, but we were honestly at a loss as to how to go about it. I feel that your help comes at the perfect time.”