We Are Tomodachi Winter 2018

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25(Japanese descendants) did everything they could to lend us a hand, for example by opening up the Japan-Mexico Center to us as a base for our operations.”The Japanese rescue team worked in cooperation with a Mexican rescue team and conducted joint search and rescue operations around the clock for three days at three disaster-stricken locations in the central part of Mexico City, where concrete buildings had collapsed. When they finished, local residents who had seen how intently the Japanese team worked surrounded the team members and conveyed their gratitude by bowing Japanese-style while saying “Domo arigato gozaimashita”—“Thank you” in Japanese. It was a scene the team members will never forget. The local media also covered the search and rescue efforts made by Japan, which had sent the largest number of personnel to the disaster area.Hirano further recounted, “In addition to our technical abilities in search and rescue, people also appreciated the dignity we accorded to those who lost their lives, such as the silent prayers we offered upon finding deceased people in the rubble. Moreover, an expert from Mexico’s National Center for the Prevention of Disasters said that collapses had been avoided among buildings constructed using earthquake resistance techniques transferred through JICA's assistance after the enormous damage caused by the 1985 Mexico City quake, and that this had prevented further casualties.”Because Japan has a long history of dealing with a wide range of natural disasters, including earthquakes, tsunamis, and typhoons, it has abundant experience and technical know-how regarding the entire disaster management cycle of response, recovery and reconstruction, as well as mitigation and preparedness. The Japanese government provides disaster management assistance emphasizing mitigation and preparedness so that others can make use of this know-how and the lessons from past megadisasters in Japan. It also works to disseminate disaster management techniques by dispatching experts overseas and by accepting officials in charge of disaster management from overseas as trainees.Hirano says, “In developing countries, it is investment in the disaster risk reduction sector before disasters occur that forms the foundation for realizing sustained development. Japan actively promotes international cooperation for disaster risk reduction, and when Japan is struck by a large-scale disaster, teams from other countries will rush to our aid. As someone involved in relief efforts, I am proud that the bonds of friendship that Japan has forged all over the world have become a force that mutually assists people threatened by crises.”The Japan Disaster Relief Rescue Team holds a “heavy” classification in accordance with International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG) guidelines. This classification, the highest in the system, indicates the capability to engage in continuous relief operations around the clock for 10 days at two separate worksites simultaneously and to coordinate other international rescue teams.Month/YearCountry/RegionDisasterJune 1990IranEarthquakeJuly 1990The PhilippinesEarthquakeApr. 1991BangladeshCycloneDec. 1993MalaysiaBuilding CollapseOct. 1996EgyptBuilding CollapseJan. 1999ColombiaEarthquakeAug. 1999TurkeyEarthquakeSep. 1999TaipeiEarthquakeMay 2003AlgeriaEarthquakeFeb. 2004MoroccoEarthquakeDec. 2004ThailandEarthquake/Tsunami Oct. 2005PakistanEarthquakeMay 2008ChinaEarthquakeSep. 2009IndonesiaEarthquakeFeb. 2011New ZealandEarthquake *deployed 3 batchesMar. 2014MalaysiaEarthquake *search capacity onlyApr. 2015NepalEarthquakeSep. 2017MexicoEarthquakeDispatches of the Japan Disaster Relief Rescue TeamJunichi HiranoIn 2008, while stationed at the JICA Myanmar Office, Hirano encountered Cyclone Nargis, which left 140,000 people deceased or missing and caused enormous damage. His engagement in emergency assistance and in recovery and reconstruction assistance activities for the disaster-stricken areas served as a springboard for earning a master’s degree in disaster management at the University of Copenhagen. He now specializes in disaster risk reduction and emergency relief mainly in the ASEAN region and aims to further develop his expertise in this field.