TOKYO - The Japan Meteorological Agency announced it will significantly revamp its disaster-related weather information system from April 28th, introducing a new category called “Danger Warning” in addition to existing warnings and advisories.
The current system has been criticized as “complex and difficult to understand,” prompting the agency to undertake a major review of how information is structured and communicated. It revealed that the new system will begin operation at around 1 p.m. on April 28th.
Under the revised framework, the naming of alerts corresponding to the five-level evacuation alert scale will change substantially. Each alert will clearly indicate its associated alert level, and naming conventions will be standardized according to the type of disaster to improve consistency.
A key feature of the overhaul is the introduction of the “Danger Warning,” positioned between the existing “Warning” and “Emergency Warning” categories, corresponding to Alert Level 4.
In addition, the agency will begin providing a new “pre-occurrence forecast” for linear precipitation bands, notifying the public two to three hours in advance when the likelihood of such events increases.
The agency noted that the changes represent a large-scale overhaul and said it will work to ensure sufficient public awareness and communication ahead of the launch.
Source: TBS
