Gender dimensions in risk communication a perspective from a sediment disaster in Hiroshima, Japan

Gender dimensions in risk communication can be examined with reference to sediment-related disaster in Hiroshima, Japan. People were informed about government activities and the possibilities for residents' action after the Nagasaki disaster in 1982. The government made a hazard map to increase understanding of disaster information since the Hiroshima disaster in 1999 and Tokai heavy rainfall disaster in 2000. Risk information for sediment hazards is of four kinds. The first is for the pre-emergency period; the second is in the event of prolonged heavy rainfall, the third concerns the emergency period itself, and the fourth offers recovery information. Thirty-two people died in the 1999 disaster in Hiroshima city, which included sixteen males and sixteen females. Risk communication to women is an absolute requirement for preparedness as evident from the case study of Hiroshima. Community meetings are generally dominated by males and often the discussion does not percolate to female members.