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On Wednesday October 20, 2004, Typhoon Tokage (called the “Typhoon no. 23 of 2004” in Japan), one of the deadliest storm in years, swept through most of the southern half of Japan. People were overcome by the massive waves and flash floods triggered by the typhoon's heavy rains and strong winds, which left at least 69 people dead, 20 missing, and some 342 injured, out of which 66 were serious injuries. The number of typhoon-related casualties was the highest in over a quarter of a century, and it further destroyed 50 homes, damaged 1,350 residences, and flooded 26,800 others. Typhoon Tokage was the tenth typhoon to make landfall in Japan in 2004. Storms and floods killed over 100 people in Japan that year, resulting in hundreds of millions of yen in damage, highlighting once again the importance of disaster management in both Japan and in East Asia.

The Union of Myanmar is located in mainland Southeast Asia and shares borders with India, China, Lao PDR, Thailand, and Bangladesh. It is situated between the Himalayan ranges and the Bay of Bengal. Due to these diversified geographical features, Myanmar is highly vulnerable to different kinds of hazards, and has experienced many kinds of disasters in the past, according to the Hazard Profile of Myanmar (2009), such as cyclones, floods, storms, landslides, earthquakes, tsunamis, droughts, and fires. For the general public, cyclones are considered the major menace in the country, however the recent earthquake with a magnitude of 6.9 in Shan state on March 24, 2011 made inhabitants realize that they are living with the risk of earthquakes as well. According to New Light of Myanmar (the State-run newspaper) on March 26, 2011, the earthquake resulted in 73 deaths (official record of the country). Besides earthquakes and cyclones, there have been many victims of landslides, and the people at coastal areas face the risk of tsunami in the case of earthquakes that occur in the Indian Ocean. In 2004, 61 people were killed in Myanmar by the Indian Ocean tsunami according to the Hazard Profile of Myanmar (2009). Furthermore, the year of 2011 witnessed chronic and severe floods all over the country.