5:15 PM - 6:30 PM
[MIS07-P01] Restoring records of the 1930 North Izu earthquake through illustration
Keywords:The North Izu earthquake, interview, illustration
A significant quantity of records document the Great East Japan earthquake due to the widespread ownership of cell phones and digital cameras among ordinary citizens when that disaster occurred. Other past disasters have fewer records available, in some instances due to wartime information control measures. Hayashi et al. (2006) interviewed survivors of the 1945 Mikawa earthquake that hit the Mikawa region in Aichi Prefecture, and then recreated both written form and Japanese-style painting images of the disaster experience, based on the accounts gathered in the interviews. Based on these interviews with the few remaining survivors, this study produced illustrations and restored a record of the scenes of the disaster. Further, details of post-disaster life and restoration efforts from the 1930 North Izu earthquake were also collected. As the disaster occurred 85 years ago, shortly before the start of World War II, the population of remaining survivors who could be interviewed is decreasing.
Ahead of the interviews, information was collected from literature, newspaper articles, and housing maps available at the Library in Shizuoka Prefecture. The events and social conditions at the time of the earthquake were organized into supplementary resources in preparation for the interviews.
Two survivors of the earthquake from Shizuoka Prefecture were interviewed on October, 2015, one who resided in Kannami Town and the other in Nirayama Town. The interview was structured with three major questions as the focal point – First, life at the time of the earthquake and actions taken during evacuation. Second, human casualties and physical damage caused by the earthquake. Finally, support they received during the process of restoring their lives. Interviewees were asked to speak freely about their memories. In order to draw the details of the damage experienced and processes of restoration of the livelihood undertaken more accurately, first-person accounts from the interview emphasized identification of "when it happened" and "where it happened" as much as possible. The interview process was anchored by asking certain questions in a sequence, changing questions in response to the memory of the interviewee, and listening to their stories.
The survivor from Kannami was able to give accounts of events before and after the earthquake in chronological order, as well as the details of his area of residence. The survivor from Nirayama, contrastingly, could only recall memories from fragmented events. A total of ten illustrations were created based on the interview results, including: 1. life before the earthquake, 2. preparations made in anticipation of the earthquake, 3. human casualties caused by the earthquake, 4. evacuation after the earthquake, 5. housing repairs and local wreckage removal efforts.Lessons also emerged from the interview results while considering the themes and details to be drawn for the illustrations. As a result, it was revealed from the pre-earthquake efforts that there was an awareness of building damage and fire prevention from lessons learned after the Great Kanto earthquake, which occurred 7 years before the North Izu earthquake in the local area where the interviewees lived. It was also revealed that precautions and specific preparations for the earthquake were being practiced in the local area, given that earthquakes were erupting frequently prior to the North Izu earthquake.
The Kannami participant was particularly able to express pre-earthquake efforts and describe chronological events during and after the disaster, which was helpful in producing illustrations through this study. The illustrations were also able to touch upon the lessons learned at the time, and therefore it may be worthwhile considering utilization of the illustrations as an educational resource for children, possibly in the form of a paperback story or a coloring book.
Ahead of the interviews, information was collected from literature, newspaper articles, and housing maps available at the Library in Shizuoka Prefecture. The events and social conditions at the time of the earthquake were organized into supplementary resources in preparation for the interviews.
Two survivors of the earthquake from Shizuoka Prefecture were interviewed on October, 2015, one who resided in Kannami Town and the other in Nirayama Town. The interview was structured with three major questions as the focal point – First, life at the time of the earthquake and actions taken during evacuation. Second, human casualties and physical damage caused by the earthquake. Finally, support they received during the process of restoring their lives. Interviewees were asked to speak freely about their memories. In order to draw the details of the damage experienced and processes of restoration of the livelihood undertaken more accurately, first-person accounts from the interview emphasized identification of "when it happened" and "where it happened" as much as possible. The interview process was anchored by asking certain questions in a sequence, changing questions in response to the memory of the interviewee, and listening to their stories.
The survivor from Kannami was able to give accounts of events before and after the earthquake in chronological order, as well as the details of his area of residence. The survivor from Nirayama, contrastingly, could only recall memories from fragmented events. A total of ten illustrations were created based on the interview results, including: 1. life before the earthquake, 2. preparations made in anticipation of the earthquake, 3. human casualties caused by the earthquake, 4. evacuation after the earthquake, 5. housing repairs and local wreckage removal efforts.Lessons also emerged from the interview results while considering the themes and details to be drawn for the illustrations. As a result, it was revealed from the pre-earthquake efforts that there was an awareness of building damage and fire prevention from lessons learned after the Great Kanto earthquake, which occurred 7 years before the North Izu earthquake in the local area where the interviewees lived. It was also revealed that precautions and specific preparations for the earthquake were being practiced in the local area, given that earthquakes were erupting frequently prior to the North Izu earthquake.
The Kannami participant was particularly able to express pre-earthquake efforts and describe chronological events during and after the disaster, which was helpful in producing illustrations through this study. The illustrations were also able to touch upon the lessons learned at the time, and therefore it may be worthwhile considering utilization of the illustrations as an educational resource for children, possibly in the form of a paperback story or a coloring book.