What Are Useful Media When Metropolitan Areas are Struck by Severe Earthquakes?

From the Internet Survey on Media Use for the Northern Osaka Prefecture Earthquake on 18 June 2018

Abstract

The Northern Osaka Prefecture Earthquake on 18 June 2018 recorded strong tremors of lower-6 JMA　(Japan Meteorological　Agency) seismic intensity scale in Osaka Prefecture. As the earthquake occurred on Monday morning, many train services were suspended in the Kansai region, which stranded a great number of commuters. NHK conducted an internet survey of around 2,000 residents of Osaka Prefecture to study their media usage on the day of the earthquake. For analysis, we divided Osaka Prefecture into “northern Osaka” and “other areas.” The findings include the following.- Regarding the information the respondents wanted to access on the day of the earthquake, most cited answers were “scale of the quake/aftershocks” is most-cited for those who were “at home or at friend’s or relative’s house” and “safety of family and relatives” for those who were outside home “staying at places other than the above” or “traveling to work or other places.”- As for the media they used right after the earthquake, the majority of those “at home or at friend’s or relative’s house” watched television (not including simultaneous online streaming of TV content) for gathering information.- Out of 1,014 respondents living in northern Osaka, 25% became “stranded commuters” who either could not return home or had to walk home.- “Portal site/apps” was most cited by as a media tool they used for deciding whether to return home or not.- The survey indicates that preparing for large scale disasters such as earthquakes directly hitting metropolitan areas and providing information responding to the needs of residents in affected areas by utilizing various types of media tools will contribute to preventing confusion.