Tokyo: An IOC inspector working on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics says a powerful typhoon and a deadly earthquake that hit Japan in the past 10 days have been a wake-up call for organisers.
The most powerful typhoon in 25 years left 11 dead in the Osaka area of western Japan when it struck on September 4. A few days later, a deadly earthquake hit the northern island of Hokkaido and killed about 40.
John Coates, an Australian who heads the inspection team, says what happened “has hit home to me.”
Coates helped organise the 2000 Sydney Olympics. He says organisers there simulated disasters, but he adds “you don’t have to dream anything up in this country, it’s very sad to say.”
He says disaster preparation “is being factored” into the planning.
