60% of local gov'ts do not have 72 hours of emergency power supplies

Around 60 percent of local government buildings across Japan were not equipped with emergency power supplies lasting 72 hours, a crucial time frame in saving human lives during times of disaster, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said Thursday.The aggregated data of all 1,741 municipalities showed only 717, or 41.2 percent, passed the standard as of June, highlighting the frailty of facilities expected to act as bases in the rescue of disaster-hit areas.The agency cited the difficulty in storing large volumes of fuel, due to lack of funds and space, as a factor, although the municipal…READ FULL ARTICLE