Tokyo travel agency offers hands-on evacuation shelter experience

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A Tokyo-based travel agency is promoting a program that allows participants to experience simulated evacuation living, saying the hands-on training can help people cope with temporary shelters in the event of natural disasters.

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Each structure, about 3 meters tall and 2 meters wide, is lightweight, highly insulating and designed for rapid deployment in emergencies. The shelters were used after a major earthquake struck the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture on Jan. 1, 2024.

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Participants also learned how to prepare an emergency curry and rice meal.

The program is built around daily activities, with options including assembling a portable toilet and discussing necessary emergency stockpiles.

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KNT-CT launched the program in the fall of last year after employees' experiences as tour guides, including encountering disasters and taking part in reconstruction support, prompted the company to study disaster preparedness in normal times. 

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Experiences that simulate life in shelters are effective in encouraging people to think about disaster preparedness, said Masanobu Kanai, a professor of civil engineering at Gunma University and a disaster prevention expert.

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