Disability News Japan Podcast: 72 Hours Later and Concerns About the Elderly and Disabled

By Barrier Free Japan

January 4 2024

KOBE – At the time of posting this it is 72 hours after the earthquake in Ishikawa Prefecture. Aftershocks seem to be lessening, although one should not be too blasé. 

Barrier Free Japan is now looking for information about how the elderly and people with disabilities may have been affected by the ‘2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake’. It is a difficult task as ‘’shogai  障害”, the word for ‘disability’ In Japanese, can also be the word for ‘failure’ and reports of events like a ‘communication failure’ means stories about people with disabilities can be difficult to find. 

*Since recording the podcast episode there has been a NHK report about a care home in Ishikawa where residents cannot use the toilet or take a bath: https://barrierfreejapan.com/2024/01/04/residents-of-ishikawa-care-home-unable-to-use-toilet-or-take-a-bath/