A man and his elderly mother in Uki, Kumamoto Prefecture, try to rest in their car. (Kazushige Kobayashi)

EDITORIAL: Every effort needed to prevent disaster-related deaths

（社説）熊本地震と猛暑　関連死の防止へ連携を

One week has passed since a strong quake hit Kumamoto and the focus, in the wake of ending the search for missing individuals, will be providing support to disaster victims, particularly in preventing disaster-related deaths.

The most pressing issue will be dealing with the extreme heat as Kumamoto recorded a high temperature of 40 degrees.

A woman in her 70s in Hikawa is believed to be the first disaster-related fatality.

On July 30, she was found in her car at home with the gasoline tank empty and the air conditioner stopped. She is believed to have died of heatstroke.

Disaster victims may worry about remaining in their damaged homes, but also hesitate to go to evacuation centers, which may not have air conditioning.

Some may feel uncomfortable being among a large group of people. Pet owners may feel they cannot go to an evacuation center.

There are various compelling reasons that victims decide to sleep in their cars.

In the Kumamoto quakes of 10 years ago, sleeping in cars became an issue because of the heightened risk of suffering from economy class syndrome.

But even with many people now still choosing to sleep in their cars, hesitation to take action is not an option.

The central and prefectural governments are focusing on restoring infrastructure, such as electricity and the water supply, and have also increased the availability of gasoline and begun securing rooms in hotels and inns for disaster victims to move in if they desire.

Another area in which greater effort is needed is calling out to those sleeping in their cars.

A Kumamoto city nonprofit organization that ordinarily supports those facing difficulties in their daily lives has begun patrols. The group hands out bottled water and contact points while also pointing out to those in their cars the need to hydrate and move their bodies to some extent.

While teams of doctors, nurses and public health workers have been dispatched to Kumamoto from various parts of Japan, they have their hands full responding at medical care and welfare facilities as well as evacuation centers.

As such, the police are mainly in charge of patrolling local communities, but greater support should be given to efforts by citizens’ groups, including helping those who choose to evacuate within their own homes.

Through cooperation between the public and private sectors, a structure to provide support to an even wider range of people is needed.

But the central and local governments must also keep in mind that strengthened patrols and calling out to those sleeping in cars is only a stop-gap measure.

During her visit to the disaster-stricken area, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi met with Kumamoto Governor Takashi Kimura, who said, “Compared to 10 years ago, the situation in the disaster-stricken area has improved at a much faster pace.”

While it is true that improvements have been made with each natural disaster, there are still many evacuation centers where disaster victims are forced to sleep together on the floor causing others to choose to sleep in their cars.

The current situation is far from ideal.

Through comprehensive reform after listening to those who sleep in their cars, it might be possible to come up with support that would lead them to choose evacuation centers over the vehicles.

To accomplish that, every effort should be made to protect the lives of disaster victims.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Aug. 5

熊本地震の発生から１週間が過ぎた。安否不明者の捜索はひとまず終了し、被災者への支援、とりわけ災害関連死を防ぐ取り組みが今後の焦点になる。
　喫緊の課題は、熊本でも最高気温４０度の酷暑日を記録した猛暑への対策だ。
　熊本県氷川町で、震災との関連が疑われる死者が確認された。７０代の女性で７月３０日、自宅の軽乗用車内で見つかった。ガソリンが切れ、クーラーは止まっていた。熱中症の疑いがあるという。
　傷んだ自宅で寝泊まりするのは不安だが、避難所は冷房がないなど環境が悪いので行きたくない。大勢のなかで過ごすのが苦手。ペットがいるので避難所に行けない。車中泊をする理由は様々で、それぞれ切実だ。
　１０年前の熊本地震でも、車中泊がエコノミークラス症候群のリスクを高めると問題になった。今また多くの人が車内を選ぶ現状に、手をこまぬいているわけにはいかない。
　国と熊本県は電気や水道などインフラの復旧に注力しつつ、ガソリン供給を増やし、旅館・ホテルの部屋を確保し希望する被災者に移ってもらう取り組みを始めた。
　加えて強化したいのが、車中泊をしている人への声かけだ。熊本市の生活困窮者支援ＮＰＯは見回りを始めた。飲料水などを渡しながら、水分の補給や適度な運動といった注意点とともに、連絡先を伝えている。
　被災地には各地から医師や看護師、保健師などのチームが派遣されているが、医療・福祉施設や避難所への対応に追われる。地域の見回りはもっぱら警察が担うが、自宅内で避難を続ける人も視野に入れ、市民団体の取り組みを後押ししたい。官民が連携し、対象を広げていく態勢づくりが望まれる。
　ただ、見回り・声かけの強化はあくまで応急処置であることを、国や自治体は忘れてはならない。
　被災地を訪れた高市早苗首相との意見交換で、木村敬・熊本県知事は「１０年前より、ものすごい速いスピードで被災地の状況は確実によくなっている」と話した。災害のたびに改善が重ねられてきたのは確かだが、被災者が避難所で雑魚寝する光景は今回も繰り返され、車中泊を続ける人がいる。目指すべき状況にははるかに遠い。
　どんな支援があれば、車内でなく避難所を選ぶか。見回りで得られた声を生かし、抜本的な改革につなげたい。そのためにも、まずは被災者の命を守ることに全力をあげねばならない。

(2026年8月5日)