Personnel Training Course for Businesses Regarding the Response to Stranded Persons Focusing on Vulnerable People from the Perspective of Business Continuity

Abstract

Businesses in urban areas have been required to accommodate stranded persons as temporary evacuation facilities during disasters. Regarding measures aimed at aiding stranded persons, aspects such as trust and the image of the business need to be considered. Therefore, in this study, a personnel training course was developed to smoothly take in stranded persons, and the outcomes of this training were evaluated by quizzes, entry sheets, and a questionnaire. This was a two-day and one-night course characterized by the use of role-play in which 20 participants experienced the series of processes that unfold during disasters, playing either the role of a stranded person or a facility member. This training included emergency food provision using real stockpiled food and accommodation training using actual bedding stored in a model facility. After the review, when the participants were taught the correct response for vulnerable people, their scores in the test regarding the points of caution in vulnerable people were significantly higher than those prior to the course, confirming that participants had acquired knowledge as a result. Furthermore, through training using real food and accommodation, the participants were able to understand victims’ requirements by experiencing the need for satisfactory emergency rations and comfortable bedding.

Utilizing Population Distribution Patterns for Disaster Vulnerability Assessment: Case of Foreign Residents in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area of Japan

“…The discussion of the numbers and composition of foreign residents in relation to the disasters in the country came to light after the 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji earthquake, where non-Japanese nationals suffered greater casualties and property destructions per ratio than Japanese nationals [14]. This reiterated the concerns and a subsequent inclusion of foreign residents with the likes of infants, the elderly, physical and mentally handicapped people, as well as the sick, as the most vulnerable groups at risk to disasters in Japan [15]. Earlier studies have analyzed these vulnerabilities from the perspective of language abilities, disaster experience, and perception [16][17][18], which have yielded improvements in policies and initiatives accordingly.…”