The government plans to develop a computer system that can immediately calculate appropriate public evacuation plans in the event of a nuclear, biological or chemical attack, or an attack on a nuclear or petroleum facility, according to official sources.
The envisioned system, to be developed from fiscal 2006 to 2008 at a cost of some 300 million, yen will hopefully specify areas requiring evacuation, areas that residents should be moved to and what routes they should take, the sources said.
Immediately after receiving data on the attack, the system would predict the extent of damage and how it would spread, taking into account such conditions as population distribution, geography, attack location and wind direction.
The predictions, as well as the recommended evacuation plans, would be shown on a computer-generated map.
The system is initially to be set up on the assumption of an attack in an urban area using sarin gas, which was used in the 1995 Tokyo subway attack by Aum Shinrikyo.