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The 2019 novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, has rapidly spread across the world, and has since become not only a health problem but also a socioeconomic problem. In disaster-prone countries like Japan, there is substantial concern about the occurrence of natural disasters during the COVID-19 pandemic. When a natural disaster occurs, many people evacuate to shelters, and an outbreak of infectious disease often happens in shelters. In this situation, we should consider the management of evacuation shelters under this pandemic situation. Many types of research have investigated infectious diseases in shelters after a natural disaster. However, these are about infectious diseases after a disaster, and not about the occurrence of natural disasters under a pandemic like the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, such researches mainly focus on medical teams or local governments who respond to infectious diseases. Based on the above mentioned information, the purpose of this study is to clarify (i) the change in citizens' awareness of risk influenced by the spread of COVID-19 and (ii) the measurement and decision necessary for evacuating people under COVID-19. We administered a questionnaire to Japanese citizens from April to May 2020, and found that majority of people do not want to have evacuation life under COVID-19, and this tendency is larger among people who live together with the aged and the care-needed. In addition, this research confirmed the risk awareness structure applicable to both COVID-19 and natural disasters. The results show that many people firmly ask governments to take measures against infectious disease such as using hotels as shelters, securing personal spaces in shelters, storing masks and disinfectors, and so on during an outbreak of an infectious disease. However, it is not enough to take such measures only; it is necessary to provide accurate information and mental support to reduce anxiety in people. Based on these results, we should consider more about the management of shelters under COVID-19 as soon as possible before the arrival of typhoon season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to develop a support system for planning human resource allocation of shelter management by modeling the matching between the shelter and the staff on the basis of the set theory approach to enable sufficient days off, reduce long work hours, and consideration for appropriate rotation without causing the mental and physical deterioration of the shelter management staff. Using this matching model, a basic study was conducted to determine the appropriate human resource allocation to manage the shelter with a small number of staff members, free from unbalanced work days. The study results elucidate the relationship between the number of possible consecutive work days and that of required consecutive days off. In addition, the human resource allocations with experience in shelter management and the setting method of days off were modeled and their results are presented in this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Yangon is one of the most populated and socio-economically important cities in Myanmar. Unfortunately, it is located in a moderately active-seismic area, and significant damage and loss will be incurred if an earthquake occurs there in the future. The seismogenic Sagaing Fault passes 40 km to the E of Yangon, which has experienced several destructive earthquakes in the past. The urban area studied here, Kyauktada, Pazundaung, and Botahtaung townships, are located mostly on a soft alluvial plain, which is mainly composed of sand, silt, and clay, which are sediments prone to amplify seismic waves. The Yangon Bosai Operation Support System (BOSS), designed to establish a proper disaster management system based on the potential damage that a future earthquake might cause, is under development. BOSS has two components damage prediction and damage response – which are based on predicted damage and current response capability and practices in Myanmar. For damage prediction, major inputs include information on the underlying soils, building construction and associated fragility functions, based on different building types. Microtremor survey is a useful tool for reviewing underlying soil layer information, as this can significantly affect vulnerability assessments and the identification of potential damages. Microtremor surveys and analyses were therefore conducted at 88 sites throughout the studied urban areas to acquire key ground information for BOSS. Our analyses showed that the fundamental frequency of horizontal to vertical spectral ratio (H/V ratio) of microtremors generally ranged 0.6–2.4 Hz, while the peak amplitude was between 1.3 and 4.0. Soil thickness ranged 60–210 m, and the average shear wave velocity over the ground's upper 30 m, Vs30, was in the range 180–560 ms-1. All outcomes from this research will become key input parameters for BOSS development in Yangon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]