“I sent off all the hospital staff because I believed that SDF [Self Defense Force] troops and police would arrive at any minute to rescue us.”-Suzuki Ichiro, Futaba Hospital

On 24 July 2012, Japanese media reported that a government investigation, into the rescue efforts after the 11 March 2011 tsunami, actually caused people to die!

In one example the hospital director had the staff evacuate the damaged Futaba hospital thinking the rescue of the patients would be soon.  Their rescue was a full two days later, and four patients had died as a result.

The rescue effort at the Futaba hospital still took five days to complete and another 19 patients died!

The recently released government investigation showed that SDF units were not trained to handle such large natural disaster rescues. But to make things worse, the investigation said lack of communications and logistical coordination problems with rescuers were the main problems.

“Those in charge of a lifesaving mission should have handled their task with a stronger sense of responsibility.”-Government report, released 23 July 2012

Local governments are to blame as well. The Fukushima prefectural government had designated four hospitals to receive people from damaged hospitals, but, local government officials never notified the SDF, and they never even notified their own local disaster response task force!