Disasters of global interdependences: lessons learned from the worst typhoon disaster in Japan

Typhoon Isewan, Japan's deadliest typhoon in 1959, prompted significant changes in disaster management and led to the Disaster Countermeasures Basic Act in 1961. Despite precise storm forecasts, the catastrophe claimed over 5000 lives due to factors such as urbanization, land subsidence, mismanaged disaster response, deficient resident awareness, and the accumulation of driftwood. In the Minami ward of Nagoya, the driftwood alone accounted for more than 1400 deaths. Nagoya's role as a significant wood trading hub amplified the disaster's severity due to its extensive import–export activities. This study probes into the underlying global interdependences issues that contributed to the root causes of the driftwood disaster during Japan's rapid economic ascent in the post-WWII era. The Forensic Investigation of Disaster Risk approach was utilized as a methodological tool. Consequently, the research identifies the timber trade with the Philippines and the US and the complex interplay of environmental and social systems as the disaster root causes. This examination offers invaluable insights from the disaster, shedding light on disaster risk management and how potential disasters can be prevented or mitigated from global interdependence and latecomer advantages’ perspectives.