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【アメリカ】ニューヨーク市は約37万5千人に向けた強制避難命令をどう発表したか

こんにちは。渡邉です。

ニューヨーク市でハリケーン・サンディーの際に強制避難命令が発令されましたが、発令者の市長からどのようなメッセージが伝えられたのかを今日は俯瞰してみたいと思います(前回のブログの続きです)。

結論から先に言えば、気象予測や被害の予測を基に強制避難命令を発令したことや、避難に際しての関連情報が網羅されています。

では、メッセージの中で語られていることを詳しく見ていきます。英文の出典はニューヨーク市のHPです(リンクはこちらです)。引用に当たり、今回のトピックにあまり関係のない冒頭の一部は省略しています。


■前日の高潮予測からの変化
満潮とハリケーンの風により低い土地での高潮発生が約12時間ごとに予測されているということを伝えた後で、前日の時点での予測よりも浸水エリアが拡大しそうなことを伝えています。また、高潮のピークや被害が発生し始めるタイミングも述べられています。
“The surge, particularly at high tides – and there’s a high tide roughly every 12 hours, so tomorrow morning – tonight, tomorrow morning, tomorrow night, the next morning – that’s when the tide is in, and if the wind is going in the right direction, it brings an enormous amount of water in and can flood lower-lying areas, and so that’s what we’re talking about. And what they said is the surge will be a few feet more than what they predicted yesterday. They now are talking about a surge from six to 11 feet. The gale-force winds are going start late this afternoon and growing overnight. The worst of the storm will still be on Monday night, and that’s the worst of the surge. But tides overnight this night will lead to flooding in low-lying coastal areas – those designate as Zone A. There’ll be a period tomorrow at low-tide when there won’t be a surge, but then there the high-tide. There won’t be a lot of water, but then the big one will be coming actually tomorrow night. Having said that, the one tonight can do plenty of damage. 

■準備を始めるタイミング
明日何とかしようと考えるのではなく、今日の段階で災害への備えをする必要があるという時間的な面を被害予測を用いながら強調しています。
“So I don’t want anybody to go to bed tonight thinking that they can spend tomorrow worrying about the night – the night after. We’ve got to take some preparations today. And we anticipate that the surge will hit a lot of low-lying areas, and that the possibility of flooding will continue into Tuesday afternoon.
■市長の権限で行う対応
ゾーンAと呼ばれる土地の低いエリアに強制避難命令を出すことや月曜日は市の公立校を休校にすることが述べられています。
“In light of these conditions, I’m going to sign an Executive Order mandating evacuation of the Zone A areas. I’m also ordering that all of the City’s public schools be closed on Monday.
■対象人数と避難のタイミングの指示
約37万5千人を対象として避難を命じること、避難は今日の午後に行うべきことを述べています。
“Now first, as to the evacuation zone: Let me stress that we are ordering this evacuation for the safety of the approximately 375,000 people who live in these areas. If you live in these areas, you should leave them this afternoon.
■避難対象地域の説明および確認方法の呼びかけ
ゾーンAに含まれる地区名及び自分がどのゾーンに居住しているかを知るための方法(市のウェブサイトから住所を入力して確認するか、市の問い合わせ窓口である電話「311番」にかけて確認する2種類の方法)を伝えています。
“Low-lying areas – Zone A – include: Coney Island, Manhattan Beach, and Red Hook and other areas along the East River in Brooklyn; all of the Rockaways, and also Hamilton Beach and Broad Channel in Queens;  almost all the coastal areas of Staten Island; City Island, a small patch of Throgs Neck, and other patches of the South Bronx are also part of Zone A; and Battery Park City and stretches of the West Side waterfront and of the Lower East Side and East Village in Manhattan. 
“If you want to find out do you live in Zone A, it’s very simple: Just call 311 or go to the City’s website at nyc.gov. Type in your address, or give your address to the operator, and they will tell you if you are in Zone A.
■公営住宅のエレベーター停止や鉄道・バスの運休計画情報
避難のタイミングを逃さないよう、ゾーンA内の公営住宅のエレベーター停止予定時刻や鉄道・バスの運休計画をアナウンスしています。
“If you live in one of the 26 public housing developments in Zone A, be aware that all elevators there will shut down at 7 pm tonight. So it really is important that you leave this afternoon. 
“Also, the MTA has announced that they will start shutting down service of subways starting at 7 tonight, buses at 9 tonight. So if you need mass transit to leave Zone A, there really is a timeline when if you don’t get there before they stop, you’re going to be- have to find another way to get out.
■避難をしないことへの警告
本人だけではなく、救助者等の生命も危険にさらすことになると警告しています。
“Let me stress: If you don’t evacuate, you’re just putting your own life in- you’re not just putting your own life in danger; you are endangering the lives of first responders who may have to come in and rescue you. And we hope you don’t face those kinds of dire situations, but you could.
“My concern is for all the people, and particularly for the first responders who are willing to put their lives on the line, but there’s no reason to have extra risks just because some people said, ‘Well, maybe I’ll wait it out,’ and then later on changed their mind.
■避難対象者の取るべき行動
避難対象地域外の友人宅や家族宅に避難するか、避難所に避難すべきということを述べています。避難所では寝る場所と食事、ペット用のスペースが用意されていること、車を置くスペースがないため避難所に来るときには公共交通機関を利用してほしいことが伝えられました。また、各避難所には最低1か所の車椅子対応の入り口があることも言及されています。
“If you do live in Zone A, your first option should be to seek shelter in the homes of family or friends in the city outside of Zone A during the storm, and you have all day to do that. 
“As of 9 am this morning, we’ve also opened 72 evacuation centers in public schools around the city. You can, once again, find their by calling 311 or going to nyc.gov. 
“If you live in Zone A and do not have a safe place to stay with friends or family out of Zone A, these shelters that I’ve talked about – the 72 – provide a place to sleep and meals, and there will be room for your pets, so take your pets along.
“If you are going to use one of these shelters, we strongly urge you to get there via public transportation. All of these shelters have at least one entrance usable for wheelchairs. But they might not have parking, so if you want to drive, there might not be a place to put your cars.
■追加情報の入手先
311番への電話やウェブサイト等が紹介されています。
“If you require further information, you can call 311, or visit the Office of Emergency Management website, or the website of the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities, which will also provide information about accessible transportation.
■避難に援助が必要な場合の対応方法
避難は強制力を持ったものであることを伝え、避難に援助が必要な場合は311番に連絡を取るように伝えています。
“But I want to reiterate that this evacuation is mandatory. It is for your own safety. If you cannot evacuate yourself and need assistance, call 311 and we will be sure to make sure somebody comes and helps you.
■ゾーンA内の病院等の対応
患者の避難を指示した病院とそうではない病院があることなどを理由を付して説明しています。
“Now, we will not be, in general, evacuating patients in the hospitals and chronic care facilities in Zone A, although we have evacuated or are in the process of evacuating a small hospital in downtown Manhattan. 
“The reason for all of this is that the shelters have facilities, they have backup generators, and it’s dangerous to move people when they’re elderly. So on balance, we think they’ll be fine. Every one of the shelters has been contacted more than once, and we’re satisfied that it’s an intelligent decision to leave them in place.
“The teams from the City Health Department are at these facilities making sure that the emergency generators are working and that they have back-up fuel supplies. And yesterday these facilities were also ordered to increase staffing immediately, and they have. Patients are also being moved to higher floors, where they should be safer in the case of flooding. And all of them have discharged patients that don’t really require their services to reduce the number of people they have to take care of.
■公共交通機関の対応状況
公共交通機関が運休する旨伝えるとともに、運休開始時刻までは列車が増発され避難の対応に当たることが報告されています。
“Earlier this morning, Governor Cuomo and the MTA announced that they have begun to put in effect the contingency plan that they described Saturday. As I said before, they’ll be closing down the City transit and suburban commuter rail systems tonight. Last subway runs will be at 7 pm; last bus runs will be at 9 pm. In the meantime, they are adding extra staff during the- today to be able to provide more transportation for people who want to leave Zone A. 
“They do have to make sure that their equipment doesn’t get damaged. Otherwise, we would not have subway trains when this is over or buses when it’s over. So I think they are taking the kind of appropriate action that they should. That does put some pressure on everybody to use their facilities, however, while they’re still functioning.
■ハリケーンの危険性の強調
このハリケーンが深刻なものであること、ゾーンAの避難が強制的なものであることを再度伝えるとともに、安全な屋内に留まる事を求めています。
“Let me repeat what I said earlier: This is a serious and dangerous storm. For those in Zone A, evacuation is mandatory. In or out of Zone A during the storm, however, the safest place to be is indoors.
■ハリケーン時の注意事項
住居によっては停電により水の供給が止まる場合があるので水をあらかじめ確保しておくことや、急な停電に備えてエレベーターを利用しないことなどを呼びかけています。また、窓などから離れ、風による飛来物に注意するように伝えています。
“If you live in a high-rise and lose power, you may lose water as well. So I suggested yesterday, fill a few pots of water and leave them on the sideboard so you can drink. If- you can use them for other- the wash. 
“During the height of the storm, use staircases. Avoid using elevators. You never know when power would go out. You don’t want to be stuck in an elevator. And if you are, obviously our Fire Department will come and rescue you, but they’ve got enough to do, so if we can avoid calling on them for those kinds of things, they’ll be there for real emergencies. 
“Stay away from windows and close your drapes. As we said yesterday, flying objects can go right through a window. Now, gale-force winds are something that almost all buildings in the city are built to handle, but there are old buildings where sometimes pieces of the building fly off. We think that construction sites are all tied down, and that’s not as much of a worry as some of the older buildings. But if you don’t go outside, and you don’t go near your windows, you don’t run the risk of getting hit by flying objects.
■今後の学校の休校状況
翌々日以降の休校判断をいつ行うかなどを述べています。
“As I said, the public schools will be closed on Monday. We’ll make a decision Monday afternoon, evening about Tuesday. Our hope is that we can be open on Tuesday, but we will close the schools on Monday. Teachers who work in schools where we have opened shelters have volunteered to report to their shelters for serving the public, and that’s great. We will need them.
■災害時の特例や市の対応
市内のパーキングメーターの制度などを一時的に不適用とする旨や、ハリケーン中も市役所が休まず対応に当たることを伝えています。
“Street cleaning rules and parking meter rules are suspended citywide on Monday, but City offices are open and City employees should make every effort to report to their jobs on Monday morning.
■強制避難方法の周知方法
交差点でのサインの掲示や警察車両による呼びかけの実施の他、市の住宅局(NYCHA)がゾーンA内の対象施設を一戸一戸訪問して避難命令を伝えていることなどが報告されています。
“Now we will, if we have any more updates, put them out later in the day. We will try to notify everybody in Zone A. It’s part of it depending on the fourth estate to do that. Part of it will we have signs up at intersections, and Police Department speaker- loudspeakers from cars will go around and try to notify everybody. NYCHA’s been knocking on all the doors in their Zone A facilities, and hopefully people will understand that it’s in their interest to get out.
■逃げない選択肢に対する批判
救助者を危険にさらす可能性があることや、避難しておけば防げたかもしれないケースに対してマンパワーがとられ、真の緊急事態に対応できなくなることを批判しています。
“And a lot of people say, ‘Oh well, I’m just going to tough it out.’ If down the road, you can’t tough it out and we have to come in with our first responders saving you, those people can’t- those first responders put their lives in danger and aren’t available for true emergencies.
■災害に対する警戒の呼びかけ
ゾーンA以外の住民に対しても、飲料水の確保や排水溝等の掃除、風で飛びやすいものを固定するなどの対応を求めています。
“Now’s the time to take the kind of sensible precautions that we said yesterday, even outside of Zone A. Make sure you have drinking water. Make sure storm drains and rain gutters are clear of debris. Secure outdoor items that might blow away in high winds.
■公園やマリーナの閉鎖予定
午後5時をもって閉鎖される予定であることや、嵐の中海に出ないよう呼びかけが行われています。
“City parks and marinas, incidentally, will be closed as of 5 pm today until further notice. So please – and some people in marinas want to ride this out – this is a dangerous storm, and that’s just not the smartest thing to do.
■避難のタイミングについてのアドバイス
午後7時に公共交通機関がストップするので、この時間よりも前に避難を完了させることや、運行終了間際の混乱を避けるため、早めの避難が呼びかけれています。
“If you are going anywhere by public transportation today, just plan to complete your trip by 7 pm. This is critical: If you live in Zone A and must evacuate, do not wait until the last minute to get to public transportation. No system can accommodate every single person if they all show up at the same time. That’s not what they’re designed to do. So it would make a lot of sense to leave a little earlier. An extra couple of hours would probably make your evacuation trip a lot easier, and it certainly will help everybody else.
■買い出しに関するアドバイスと風に対する注意
必要なものは日中に買い出しを行うようアドバイスをしています。また、風が強まっていくので枝などの落下物に注意を呼び掛けています。
“Stay inside as much as possible after sunset tonight. There’s no reason why you can’t go to the store today to get the kind of stuff that you need, or even be a little bit outside. But just remember, as these winds blow and grow during the day, which- and they’ll grow to gale-force winds sometime tonight, the chances of a branch coming down or something are great.
■人命重視の強調
構造物等への被害や一時的な不便よりも人的な被害を出さないことが重要である旨を繰り返し述べています。最後は、効果的なプランに沿ってニューヨーク市民を守り、災害復旧を迅速に行うことを約束しています。
“And we’ve been through a lot in the last 11 years. We’ve had experience with hurricanes. We’ve had experience with a transit strike and a blackout and more. So we know what to do, and I’m completely confident that all of the City agencies have made all the preparations that are appropriate, that they’re working together. 
“We’ll certainly get through this, but we’d like to get through this with nobody getting hurt, and that’s a lot more important than property damage. My guess is that with an exception of some of the flooded areas, there won’t be a lot of property damage. 
“But that’s not our first priority. Our first priority is keeping everybody safe, and because of the surge we think it’s appropriate that I sign an order mandating evacuation from Zone A. 
“We all pull together in tough times. I’m sure your friends and families outside of Zone A would just love to have you for dinner tonight and to stay over. And if you have to stay on a couch, it might not be the most convenient thing the world – or even if you have to sleep with a blanket on the floor – but it’s a lot better than running risks of having people get hurt or worse
“We have an effective plan to keep New Yorkers safe and to recover from this as quickly as possible, and we will do that. 

長くなりましたがニューヨーク市長のメッセージの要約は以上です。

日本の避難勧告・避難指示の発表の仕方と比較すると、市長がこの情報発信でカバーした範囲は非常に広く、かつ具体的なものであることが分かります。

日本では、避難勧告や避難指示といった情報を発令した「事実」の伝達に重きが置かれがちですが、ニューヨーク市の場合は強制的な避難命令が発令されたことだけを伝えるのではなく、判断に至った状況や今後の見込み、市民が具体的にどう行動すればよいかへの言及、さらに、公共交通機関等などの運行状況を踏まえた情報提供などを行っています。自治体トップが人命第一の姿勢を訴えたことも重要なポイントの1つと言えます。

日米という文化の違いはありますが、今回ご紹介した例には日本の避難勧告等の発表時に参考になる要素が詰まっているものと考えられます。

(「【コラム】避難勧告の基準特集に関するまとめ(情報共有という課題)」に続く)