When it comes to building a state-of-the-art earthquake early warning system, California is behind.
California and the U.S. have long neglected the development of such a system. The alarm system we do have still isn’t integrated into as much infrastructure as it might be. And the concept is still not universally understood by the public.
By contrast, earthquake early warning systems in Japan and Mexico are part of the fabric of daily life with the public understanding their lifesaving potential while accepting their inherent limits.
In Japan, earthquake early warnings have become well-integrated across society, with warnings automatically piped to cellphones, television and radio. In Mexico City, a ubiquitous network of sirens blares moments after a large temblor is detected to give residents time to seek safety before shaking arrives.
ISHINOMAKI, Miyagi Prefecture Yuto Naganuma has long felt uncomfortable with how he is described in the media.
The 26-year-old serves as a storyteller to talk about his community and his former school, Okawa Elementary School, where 84 pupils and staff members were killed or went missing in the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami.
But every time he is interviewed, Naganuma says, he is introduced as “a former Okawa Elementary School pupil” or as “a bereaved family member.”
He developed a sense of awkwardness toward this description when he was a senior high school student.
In one interview back then, he thought the media outlet wanted to do a sports-related story. As the captain of the school’s baseball club, he was prepared to discuss the team and the games.