TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taipei will send five search-and-rescue personnel to Tokyo this week for disaster preparedness exercises focused on large-scale emergency coordination.
Taipei City Fire Department section chief Hsu Hsiao-yun (徐孝允) will lead four team members on the July 1-6 trip, which includes technical exchanges and a comprehensive disaster prevention drill, per CNA.
The main exercise is scheduled for July 5 in Tokyo’s Edogawa Ward and other low-lying areas at risk of flooding. The city said organizers moved this year’s training from the usual period around Japan’s Sept. 1 Disaster Prevention Day to July because the scenario centers on winds and flooding.
Taipei fire officials said the program is meant to improve cooperation among rescue teams from major Asian cities. The drills also emphasize coordination between residents, government agencies, and local authorities during wide-area disaster response, according to the report.
Fire officials said the exchange gives Taipei a chance to study how Japan prepares for hazards similar to those seen in Taiwan, including earthquakes and storm-related flooding. Japan’s annual drills involve nearly 1 million people, ranging from volunteers and troops to police and firefighters, per the report. Taipei has now joined the Japan drills 18 times, per the report.
Taipei’s search-and-rescue team became Taiwan’s first to receive heavy-capability certification under the National Accreditation Process in 2021. It joined the Taiwan Search and Rescue Team sent to Turkey after the February 2023 earthquake, and passed heavy-capability recertification on May 29.
