By Sean Coombs
Expo Reporter
OSAKA, Japan — Tsunami warnings issued for parts of Japan on July 30 after an earthquake near Russia had virtually no impact on the Expo site in Osaka. And Expo officials provided assurances that regardless, planners had done everything possible to protect the Expo site from such natural disasters.
People all across Japan had their morning routines interrupted on Wednesday by tsunami warnings on their TVs and smartphones.
After an earthquake off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula, urgent tsunami warnings were issued for the northern and eastern coasts of Japan, forecasting waves as high as three meters.
Areas on the southern and western coasts, including the Osaka region, had lesser tsunami advisories issued for waves of only one meter.
While over 2 million residents across Japan were told to evacuate to high ground, no such warnings were issued for Osaka.
There was little disruption at the Osaka Expo and the Canada pavilion, where activities continued as planned and venues stayed open.
The only noticeable disruption to visitors was the temporary suspension of shuttle bus service between the Expo island and the rest of Osaka due to some bridges being closed by regional authorities as a tsunami precaution.
As a result, visitors were diverted to use the Osaka metro system towards Yumeshima station, the Expo’s only train station.
Some Expo visitors said they were puzzled by the lack of messaging from the Expo organizers when the alert was initially issued.
“I was really confused,” said visitor Minae Yamato in an interview the day after the alert. “They were talking about a tsunami on the news, but nobody at the Expo seemed to know anything about it.”
At a hastily organized press conference that afternoon, the Osaka Expo Crisis Management Committee explained their response to the alert and publicized their disaster management plans.
Committee member and safety advisor Akira Tobita explained during the press conference that the delay in issuing messages was due to the time it took to communicate with regional authorities to coordinate a response.
“We had to be sure that our messaging was accurate,” he said. “But there was never any danger posed to visitors.”
Tobita and other committee members reassured the public that the Expo site is eight meters above sea level, meaning that the facilities and pavilions were safe from the tsunami waves initially forecast.
The first public message from the Expo organisers came three hours after the initial alert, with the Expo loudspeaker system reassuring visitors that there was no danger.
Further messages published on social media and through on-site staff instructed visitors to attend the Expo and continue activities as normal.
Individual pavilions used their own means to manage the alert, with the Canada pavilion liaising with the Canadian embassy in Tokyo to confirm the situation and implement procedures to keep staff and guests informed.
This reassurance was reiterated by Expo public relations director general Sachiko Yoshimura in an interview after the press conference.
Citing the Expo’s 2025 disaster prevention plan, Yoshimura said that all measures were taken to protect everyone at the site.
“We have extensive evacuation procedures and shelter infrastructure,” she said. “The Expo site has been made as safe as possible.”
The disaster prevention plan predicts that access to the grounds may be disrupted by a tsunami alert, laying out that boats and aircraft provided by government agencies are available to evacuate guests.
Addressing the concerns about messaging, Yoshimura said that the priority for Expo staff was to prevent panic among visitors.
“We don’t want to cause panic unnecessarily,” she said. “Our plans ensure that guest safety is never compromised, and since there was only a tsunami advisory, no urgent message was needed.”
The committee and Yoshimura directed further questions about tsunami preparedness to the City of Osaka, as the Expo falls under their regional jurisdiction of disaster prevention and issuing public alerts.
Despite the questions, some visitors like Yuki Moriguchi seemed unfazed by the threat posed by tsunamis.
“I didn’t hesitate to come here,” he said the day after the alert. “Japan has always been well prepared for natural disasters, and I don’t think many people in Osaka panicked about it.”