Now that the storm is over and the sun has come out, here’s a little update on the 5-level warning system that is intended to make it easier for people to understant when and if they need to evacuate.
First, I found one article in English that presents a version of the new table:
The attached image of an English-language table is roughly equivalent to the more colorful Japanese table. Unfortunately, however, even though the information is the same, the scale is in the opposite order (in Japanese, the highest level of alert is on the top while in the English table it’s on the bottom) and the color scheme is different.
I called the JMA today about this and spoke with a nice man who seemed quite sympathetic to my request for an official English version of the Japanese chart. He said he would pass my opinion to his superiors.
In the meantime, I’d like to encourage everyone to make sure you understand what the various levels mean so that if they come up in the future, you can make sense of them – even if you don’t happen to understand the Japanese words used in the chart.
– Kirk
P.S. I think the meaning of level 5 isn’t explained fully in the article. The article says that “level 5 indicates the need to take whatever action is necessary to safeguard one’s own life.” In plain English, this means that, by this point, trying to get to an evacuation center may be more dangerous than hunkering down where you are. So, if you didn’t evacuate at level 4, then at level 5 you’re probably better off to just try to find that safest place in your immediate vicinity.