Tsunami Signs, Memorials and Evacuation Drills in Miyagi Prefecture After the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake Tsunami
Abstract Since the 2011 Tohoku earthquake tsunami there have been multiple efforts to maintain the awareness of people in the affected areas, such as tsunami signs, memorials and evacuation drills. This chapter briefly introduces and summarizes the ongoing activities in this respect in Miyagi Prefecture. Tsunami signs are usually placed by both the Miyagi prefectural government and by individuals to show the inundation level of the 2011 tsunami. Other signs show where the tsunami stopped, indicate the elevation above sea level or provide information related to the reconstruction. Almost 40 locations have been proposed to be preserved as memorials of the 2011 tsunami. They can be classified as damaged private or public school buildings, damaged infrastructure and other ruined or natural areas. Although the local government has expressed a desire to preserve these candidate sites, strong opposition by some local people remains and final decisions may require more time. Finally, tsunami evacuation drills are one of the most effective measures for tsunami risk reduction. Examples of evacuation drills in the Sendai coastal plain (Sendai, Iwanuma, and the town of Yamamoto) are presented. There, more time is required to conduct evacuation because a tsunami can penetrate as far as 5 km due to the flatness of the terrain. One of the findings is that serious traffic during tsunami evacuation remains one of the most important issues in some areas, as vehicles are required for evacuation because of the flat topography. These issues should be solved as the reconstruction progresses to create resilience against future tsunamis.