BOSAI: Be Prepared - Dealing With Female Disaster Needs

Are you ready if disaster strikes?

Find out what you need to do by watching this program...

BOSAI: Be Prepared.

The topic this time is "Dealing with Female Disaster Needs."

These are disaster management manuals for women.

They've become very popular in Japan in recent years and have even been featured in fashion magazines.

It's because the gender-specific issues women face at times of disaster have come to public attention.

Hello everyone.

My name is Kate and I'm from Portland, Oregon, in America.

Today we're in the lovely Miyagi Prefecture in Sendai City.

This is actually not my first time here.

I came here once on a volunteer trip when I was in high school, and I saw firsthand the devastation that the 2011 earthquake and tsunami had on this area.

I didn't realize at that time all of the issues that women experience in the shelters, but we have the opportunity today to talk to a specialist.

Kate meets Ohuchi Yukiko, a disaster management local leader in Sendai, the largest city in the Tohoku region.

In 2011, Ohuchi experienced the Great East Japan Earthquake in Sendai, and she joined in the operation of a local evacuation center.

Later, she became the first woman in the area to serve on the evacuation center management committee because she had realized the center was basically managed from a male point of view,

and that women's issues were hardly considered.

Even the private female items that arrived as part of the relief supplies were distributed by men.

There were no changing rooms for women at the center.

Moreover, some of the toilets were broken, and to prevent people from using them, even the changing area located right in front of them was closed off.

Nearly 2,000 people were in the gym that served as an evacuation center.

Other centers also had no partitions for men and women to change clothes or breastfeed in private.

You have mentioned that women had struggled to ask for what they need or to kind of raise their voice during previous disasters...

To begin with, we women couldn't do anything back then.

We were unable to do what we wanted to do, and couldn't help.

We knew very little about disaster management and rescue activities, and we couldn't get involved with the men who organized everything.

It wasn't that the men were mean to us, but we hadn't helped to prepare the evacuation center operation manual and had no training,

so we just didn't know how to act.

Ohuchi subsequently studied and underwent training in disaster management and became a local leader in Sendai.

She's now training other women to follow in her footsteps.

What does Ohuchi take to an evacuation center?

She will now show us some of the items.

I want to show you what's in my emergency backpack.

The first essential item is a portable radio.

Everyone needs one, as power may be cut off and you can't use your smartphone.

A battery-powered radio can provide vital information.

Another essential item is a portable toilet.

I carry this with me at all times.

Portable toilets contain a coagulant.

Various types are available, including some with a poncho.

Just as important as a toilet is an aluminum blanket.

It's hard to keep warm in a shelter if the electricity is cut off.

Furthermore, she always carries a whistle.

I always carry a whistle.

You can use it to call people when something happens.

Even if you're in danger and cannot speak, maybe you can still blow your whistle.

Next, sanitary products.

Sanitary napkins, sanitary panties, and wet wipes for the delicate area.

Sanitary products are stockpiled at evacuation centers, but the number is limited, so it's safer to prepare your own items.

Other hygiene products include body wipes, dry shampoo...

...and water-absorbing pads.

Like diapers?

Simple prefabricated diapers.

You never know when toilets will be unavailable or where you might have to go help someone, so I recommend wearing one all the time.

Can I ask you something?

Evacuation centers have toilet issues.

Is there a place to dispose of sanitary products?

Yes, there is, and a reasonable supply of sanitary products.

OK.

In addition...

...skin lotion and an all-in-one gel.

There may not be a lotion provided that suits your skin, so I think it's important to prepare items that you regularly use to take with you to the evacuation center.

Other items are contact lenses and household medicines.

It's not a luxury to have what you need!

What's that?

A cap with holes!

If you make some tiny holes in a pet bottle cap... the bottle becomes a mini shower, and can also be used as a bidet.

With women, in particular, even underwear comes in many sizes, so don't rely on relief supplies.

If you have to go to an evacuation center, take some underwear that fits you.

Anyway, the best thing is to sort out your personal needs first and then receive support.

I think it will be less trouble if you receive support for what you lack after you've done the preparations that suit you.

The final item is the Sendai disaster management manual based on the experience of the Great East Japan Earthquake.

If you're in trouble, this leader's guide pretty much answers all questions.

The manuals for each designated evacuation center are different.

They're tailored to match each district.

Ohuchi actively participated in the production of this manual.

To ensure that women can stay safe and sound in the evacuation center, it includes such features as a lockable nursing room,

nighttime lighting and partitions around the toilets, as well as separate areas for men and women to dry their laundry.

The important lessons we learned from the Great East Japan Earthquake have been put to good use.

So, assuming that there will be lots of possible issues, it's better be prepared both materially and mentally?

Yes. You would be well advised to be prepared for suddenly having to go to an evacuation center at any time.

At the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake, I remember there were mothers carrying their babies around in the pitch-dark evacuation center.

It was freezing cold, and they had powdered milk but no hot water.

The mothers' milk didn't flow, either.

How could they get the babies to drink when there was no hot water?

The babies were crying and their young brothers and sisters were also there.

What would you do in such a situation?

In fact, Sendai City now has designated perinatal welfare shelters.

Women in the late stages of pregnancy or postpartum mothers can request permission from a perinatal welfare shelter to move there together with their children and babies.

But I wonder just how many mothers are aware that this system exists.

Well-equipped places such as nursing schools in the city are designated as perinatal welfare shelters ready for use by evacuated women in their perinatal period.

Other municipalities are also establishing welfare shelters for those in need, including pregnant women and postpartum mothers,

as well as special evacuation facilities called secondary evacuation centers.

You should make sure you know what facilities are available in your area and how you can use them.

Protect your own life by yourself...

In order to do that, you need to have knowledge.

By acquiring that knowledge, you can absolutely avoid dangers.

Women should learn many things to protect themselves, and I hope that in the future they won't find it difficult to say something because of their gender.

Both men and women should consider everyone's needs.

Yes. Awareness of getting special treatment because you're a woman has faded during the last decade, especially among young women.

On the contrary, young women like you, Kate, including high school and college students, should be aware of many things.

And whether you're a disaster management leader or not, please don't just wait for support to happen, but support those around you.