Editorial: Maximize lessons learned from past to avoid ‘disaster-related deaths’
August 7 , 2026
Earthquakes of the magnitude that struck Kumamoto last month rarely occur in the middle of the summer, at least in recent years. The blistering heat wave has made the relief effort even more difficult, especially as the temblor has severed water mains in the disaster-stricken area. All these hurdles make it even more imperative to safeguard the welfare and wellbeing of the quake victims.Among the most pressing concerns is those who survived the megaquake, only to succumb to its tragic repercussions. Known as “disaster-related deaths,” many survivors—the elderly and very young among them—are particularly vulnerable to the immense stresses and strains of living in temporary shelters without air conditioning, poor sanitation, inadequate medical care and dimming hope over ever returning to their past lives and livelihoods.
The latest example took place on August 2, when a woman in her seventies living out of her car died of heatstroke. She, along with a sizeable number of people who shun collective shelters for various personal reasons, prefer to take refuge in their own vehicles or quake-damaged homes.
That means the government, both local and national, need to move quickly in gathering detailed information on the plight of such refugees to ensure they are provided with adequate relief supplies and receive medical attention to diagnose and proactively treat such ailments as deep vein thrombosis, or “economy-class syndrome,” caused by prolonged sitting or lack of exercise. Special teams made up of healthcare professionals and social services workers must spearhead this effort to fully meet their real-world needs.
Obviously, refugees in public shelters warrant an equal depth and range of relief and care. In addition to food and water, there remains urgent demand for such needs-based proactive assistance as portable air conditioning units and electric generator vehicles, as are rapidly assembled toilets, kitchens and beds. Other measures—preventing the spread of infectious diseases, including covid, among them—need to be thorough and comprehensive.
The Kumamoto prefectural government is now opening hotel rooms to receive the displaced even as it begins to construct prefabricated homes, while the national government has approved funding for relief programs. What should not be overlooked here is the need to provide counseling services for those traumatized by the disaster.
The lessons Japan learned in a similar catastrophe that struck Kumamoto ten years earlier will also be crucial. Of those who lost their lives in the 2016 earthquake, some 80% of fatalities were the result of post-disaster complications rather than the quake itself. Komeito will exert every effort to ensure that the latest disaster will not repeat that tragic experience, laying the groundwork in which both private and public sectors can share insights and coordinate the rollout of vital social services.
