Sendai Crisis Management Official X Account

Disaster information, evacuation information, earthquake and tsunami information, and notifications are posted on our designated announcement account which has been in operation since January 2015.

Sendai Tsunami Information Conveyance System

When tsunami and other related warnings are issued, the city of Sendai broadcasts tsunami warnings and evacuation information from the 91 outdoor speakers installed in tsunami evacuation areas (areas at risk of flooding) so that information can be conveyed to citizens quickly. We also lend separate individual receivers to neighborhood associations, houses of fire brigade representatives, and individuals who are hard of hearing living in these areas.

Disaster Prevention Administration Radio

Sendai’s disaster prevention administration radio can be broadly divided into two types: (1) a tsunami information transmission system (stationary disaster prevention administration radio) in coastal areas to broadcast tsunami warnings and evacuation information ;(2)an IP network system used to transmit information and communication amongst related organizations.

The radio used for information and communication was introduced in 1972 to prevent any interruption of communication in the event of an emergency between elementary, junior high and high schools designated as evacuation centers, emergency-related organizations and city departments. Since then, the radio has been widely installed. After 2010, we had moved from an analog regional emergency system to a digital mobile information communication system, and then to the current IP network system since 2021. Currently (as of the end of FY 2025), there are 926 of these radios installed in public facilities across Sendai, such as government offices and designated evacuation centers.

Sendai City Evacuation Information Website

We have been running this website since 2016 to provide Sendai citizens with evacuation information during emergencies in an easy-to-understand format. Citizens can check information about disasters (landslides, floods, tsunamis, earthquakes), evacuation information (Emergency Safety Measures, Evacuation Instruction, Evacuation of the Elderly, Etc.), and evacuation shelter opening information in real time. They can also see which evacuation shelters cannot be opened due to the type of disaster, and when they need to move to the second floor of a building or higher.

Links

Sendai City Evacuation Information Website

Drone Operation for Tsunami Evacuation Announcement

As some of those giving directions for evacuation at the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake lost their lives, and considering the necessity of expanding and complementing existing evacuation announcement methods, the Tsunami Evacuation Announcement Drone Operation was developed as a new broadcasting method used to issue tsunami evacuation warnings and has been in full-scale operation since October 2022.
In this initiative, as tsunami warnings, etc. are being made, evacuation announcements will be carried out simultaneously by drones equipped with speakers, etc. that have been preprogrammed to fly along predetermined routes.This process is conducted entirely automatically with no manual operation needed. This is a world-first initiative in two aspects, i.e. “tsunami evacuation announcements by automatically operated drones” and “maneuvering of drones using a designated LTE communication network”.
Through the realization of this system, it is anticipated that an effective tsunami evacuation announcement network catering to visitors of eastern coastal area will be established.

Links

DRR Practice⑫ Disaster Risk Reduction Utilizing Technology