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The Chemical Disaster Response System in Japan

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 June 2012

Tetsu Okumura ,
Norifumi Ninomiya  and
Muneo Ohta
Tetsu Okumura*
Affiliation:
Assistant Professor, Emergency Department, Juntendo University Hospital, To kyo, Japan; Member, Serious Chemical Hazard Task Force, Government of, Japan
Norifumi Ninomiya
Affiliation:
Associate Professor, Department of Emergency and Critical Care Medicine, Tama-Nagayama Hospital, Nippon Medical School, Tokyo, Japan
Muneo Ohta
Affiliation:
Chairperson, Japanese Association for Disaster Medicine, President-elect, World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine
*
Emergency Department, Junlendo University Hospital, Hongo 3–1–3, Bunkyo-City, Tokyo 113–8431, Japan, E-mail: xj2t-okmr@asahi-net.or.jp
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Abstract

During the last decade, Japan has experienced the largest burden of chemical terrorism-related events in the world, including the: (1) 1994 Matsumoto sarin attack; (2) 1995 Tokyo subway sarin attack; (3) 1998 Wakayama arsenic incident; (4) 1998 Niigata sodium-azide incident; and (5) 1998 Nagano cyanide incident. Two other intentional cyanide releases in To kyo subway and railway station restrooms were thwarted in 1995. These events spurred Japan to improve the following components of its chemical disaster-response system: (1) scene demarcation; (2) emergency medical care; (3) mass decontamination; (4) personal protective equipment; (5) chemical detection; (6) information-sharing and coordination; and (7) education and training. Further advances occurred as result of potential chemical terrorist threats to the 2000 Kyushu-Okinawa G8 Summit, which Japan hosted. Today, Japan has an integrated system of chemical disaster response that involves local fire and police services, local emergency medical services (EMS), local hospitals, Japanese Self-Defense Forces, and the Japanese Poison Information Center.

Keywords

arsenicchemical disasterchemical terrorismcyanidedisasteremergency managementEMShospitalJapanlaboratorypoisoningsarinsodium azideterrorism
Type
Special Reports
Information
Prehospital and Disaster Medicine , Volume 18 , Issue 3: Terrorism-II: Special Reports , September 2003 , pp. 189 - 192
Copyright
Copyright © World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 2003

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