BEHIND THE NEWS / Japanese thinking in a Chinese disaster

Takuji Kawata

People in Japan may be able to draw lessons from the deadly earthquake that hit Sichuan Province in China on May 12. As a Japanese resident of China, I would like to touch on the most pressing issue today--how to evacuate in China in the event of an earthquake.

To begin, I would like to introduce the experiences of two women living in Beijing. The first is a Chinese woman in her 30s, who once lived in Tokyo for four years and had thoroughly mastered the Japanese evacuation method.

When the massive quake rocked China, she was in her office on the seventh floor of a building in Beijing.

Immediately after the quake jolted the city, she told her colleagues to open the door.

When the shaking stopped, many Chinese in the building flocked to the elevator, but she stopped her colleagues from following suit.

"We may be trapped in the elevator. Let's walk down the emergency stairs," she reportedly told them.

However, the decision came off badly.

At first, she realized that there were no signs to indicate floor numbers. The group soon became uncertain about which floor they were on and ended up running down to the basement.

When they finally reached the first floor after much exhaustion, they found out the door had already been locked--the building's caretaker was already gone. Fortunately, they were eventually "rescued" by a passerby who noticed their loud voices and opened the door.

The second example, the experience of a Japanese woman in her 40s, is also quite impressive.

When the earthquake struck, she was at home on the 21st floor of her condominium in the Chinese capital. After the shaking stopped, she realized smoke was entering her apartment.

A fire had actually broken out downstairs in the building, but when she called the front desk, she was told a fire drill was being conducted. But as the smoke grew thicker and smelled stronger, she called the front desk once again. This time, she was told that a resident downstairs fired a warning flare and that the smoke would stop shortly.

In Japan, she was told at school and at home that she was supposed to follow the instructions of someone in charge in an emergency, refraining from moving around without permission.

So, she stayed in the apartment, but when she looked out the window, she was shocked to see fire trucks lined up around the building. Looking at the scene, she jumped into the elevator, narrowly managing to escape death.

The first woman's experience suggests one's life may be at risk if he or she applies Japanese evacuation rules in China. On the other hand, the second example indicates if one blindly believes what is told by someone in charge in China, one may also be thrown into deep trouble.

The question is how to interpret the two examples.

In Japan, it is hard to imagine that an emergency stairway would not have signs indicating floor numbers, and it is unheard of that a condo caretaker would have run away before residents did.

In other words, Japanese evacuation rules are established based on the premise that they apply to a society whose people possess a certain level of awareness of disaster management and occupational responsibility. This means the rules may not only function in another society where people have different perceptions that result in dangerous situations.

For instance, in Japan, schools are usually designated as evacuation sites in emergencies. But in China, as you already know, school buildings collapsed one after another in the massive earthquake and aftershocks. This point is quite symbolic.

In short, China is significantly different from Japan, as can be seen in various examples. You may be in deep trouble if you try to understand Chinese society with what is considered common sense in Japan--this may be one of the most important lessons that the Japanese should learn from the Sichuan earthquake.

Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to visit the country for the Beijing Olympics in August, including quite a large number of Japanese tourists.

People should consider beforehand what actions need to be taken if they encounter a disaster.

The two Beijing women are now busy researching an ideal evacuation route in the event of another disaster, saying: "We learned a lot this time. We certainly should make efforts on our own."

Kawata is head of The Yomiuri Shimbun's China General Bureau in Beijing.