Flood fighting teams, flood fighting act

ENTRY DATE: 24.12.2014 | LAST UPDATE: 24.12.2014

CATEGORIES:

  • Disaster Prevention
  • Applicable to any disaster (Soft measures)

TECHNOLOGIES MATURITY:

Currently being promoted in Japan

Technology Owners:

Flood fighting teams in Japan

Needs Address

Needs to mitigate damage from floods, storm surges, etc.

Adaptation effects

Community-based mitigation of damage from extreme events and strengthening of local flood fighting capacity.

Overview and Features

  • In Japan, flood prevention legislation (the Flood Control Act), flood control activities are the responsibility of municipalities. Under this legislation, in municipalities where flood control is needed, municipalities are required to establish flood fighting teams as the entity to conduct for flood fighting activities.
  • In general, flood fighting teams are comprised of volunteers in each municipality. Flood-fighting teams have developed and are organized from the autonomous structure of traditional villages, and members are normally employed in other work, but participate as volunteers in patrols and the protection of levees and embankments.
  • During normal times, they conduct a variety of activities, including patrols and inspection of embankments, checking of supplies of tools and equipment (stored in warehouses), checking of communications equipment, day-to-day trainings, and other activities to prepare for a flood. When a flood occurs, the team undertakes flood control methods depending on the situation, such as working to prevent the collapse of embankments. The aim of the team is to keep flood damage to a minimum.
  • In 2012, approximately 883,000 people were engaged in activities as members of flood fighting teams across Japan.

    Table: Activities of flood fighting teams

    During non-emergency times

    • Patrols, inspections of dikes
    • Inspections of warehouse and communications equipment for flood control
    • Implementation of flood drills, trainings

    During emergencies

    • Patrols, warnings
    • Implementing flood-control work
    • Opening and closing land locks, sluice gates
     

Cost

Cost per year, per member of flood fighting team (operations, training costs, etc.): About 75,000 yen.

Considerations

In some cases it may be difficult to conduct an adequate level of flood fighting activities due to declining numbers of team members, the aging of members, the lack of adequate numbers due to an increase in people with day jobs, etc. (Note: This is in the case of Japan.)

Co-benefit, suitability for developing countries

The creation of flood fighting teams leads to stronger local capacity for disaster prevention. Even in developing countries where disaster management may be difficult at the national level, disaster prevention and mitigation at the local level may be possible.

Information Resources

  • Flood Risk Management Approaches As Being Practiced in Japan, Netherlands, United Kingdom efforts of flood risk management that has been practiced in Japan and the Netherlands Britain and the United States, and United States, IER Report 2011.
  • Shizuoka City Flood Prevention Team
    http://www.city.shizuoka.jp/deps/bosai/siz_vfld_index.html