In order to quickly restore communications infrastructure in the event of a disaster such as a Nankai Trough earthquake, an agreement has been signed between an association made up of hotels and other businesses in Kochi Prefecture and an NTT Group company involved in communications services.

The agreement was signed by the Kochi Prefecture Inns and Hotels Association, the Kochi branch of NTT West Japan, and the Kochi branch of NTT Docomo Shikoku. The purpose of the agreement is to quickly restore communication infrastructure in the prefecture in the event of a disaster, and the main contents of the agreement are to provide information on available accommodation and meeting rooms, and to ensure power sources for mobile phones.

According to the NTT Group, after the Noto Peninsula earthquake, time was spent arranging accommodation for workers heading to the site, so the agreement not only reduces the time spent searching for accommodation, but it is expected that it will also enable the company to quickly restore its communications infrastructure.

(NTT West Japan Kochi Branch Manager Yukio Saito)
“We need to ensure that toilets, water, and electricity are available, but the team members who are sent to the site also need the same environment. If we spend time on that, we won’t be able to focus on restoring communications, which is what we really want to do. To alleviate this, even if just a little, I think the most important thing is for those around us to provide support and create an environment where the people on site can do what they really want to do.”

(Masataka Fujimoto, Chairman of the Prefectural Inns and Hotels Life and Hygiene Trade Association)
“The infrastructure is difficult for guests to use to return home, and various pieces of information need to be input. We need to prepare for the shift to cashless purchasing, and we need to stock up on supplies.”

In addition, the union will be provided with three “disaster response chargers” capable of charging up to 10 mobile phones, and the NTT Group says it will continue to enter into agreements to prepare for future disasters.