Japan's Self-Defense Force and the U.S. military are cooperating for the first time to perform earthquake response drills in Tokyo all this week.
The drills, which started Monday and continue until Friday, involve around 5,000 military personnel, firefighters and police officers, according to Sankei Shimbun. The drills are intended to familiarize participants with evacuation routes and supply distribution methods that could help save lives in the event of a large earthquake taking place directly under the capital.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government says that one of the aims of the drills is to ensure that U.S. military personnel and Japanese Self-Defense Force members' roles are clearly delineated and responsibilities shared, to save time on organization in the event of a disaster, Sankei reported.
The Tokyo University Earthquake Research Institute has reported that it believes there is a 70% chance that an earthquake of magnitude 7 will occur directly beneath Tokyo within four years.
© Japan Today
6 Comments
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Ronald F Stark
Its good to see this level of cooperation! Hopefully some of the stupid differences that have hampered efforts in the past can be overcome.
American military helicopter pilots do NOT NEED Japanese pilot licenses to land in schoolyards to deliver supplies! Nor do they need endless reams of paperwork by anyone in the village who feels important.
American military doctors and nurses should be able to practice EMERGENCY MEDICINE on Japanese victims without questioning their credentials.
JGSDF and Fire Rescue are some of the best in the world from experiences I've had working with and around them. If you ever need help in this country CALL THE FIRE DEPARTMENT! These guys train hard and are true professinals. Japanese police on the other had should stick to traffic control and stay out of the way.
KariHaruka
Good to see co operation between both Japanese and US teams. Fingers crossed though that they won't have to put that training to use in the near future!
Nahh they are too busy arresting one another for either traffic violations themselves or trying to play doctor with Highschool girls.
CrazyJoe
Get ready for a rumble!
basroil
Ronald F StarkJul. 17, 2012 - 08:09AM JST
Yes, especially the navy search and rescue squads and marines, they can probably run circles around the JSDF, and are probably better able to carry supplies. Shouldn't just be supplies though, medivac runs are essential, especially if an aircraft carrier happens to be there, those things have brain surgeons aboard (not all, but larger ones have huge medical staff numbers)
Perhaps not without questioning, but at least make it that certain licenses in Japan are deemed equivalent to the US or military certification in the case of an emergency. Army hospitals are very good quality, and the military knows how to triage with the best.
noriyosan73
It is about time the USA military do something during the day or night rather than polish the "metal medal." Yanks come home asap.
Fadamor
@noriyosan73, Anno... never mind. Your comment was too ludicrous to even dignify with a response.
This seems to be just a set of logistical drills: routes to use in and out of the city and alternates in case a route is blocked, delineation of what supplies should go where and in what quantities, and how many forces should be sent to each area based on severity of damage. While the number of people involved in this drill might seem small at first glance, the truth is that they don't need every private involved at this stage of the game, only the planners.