Architecture and Urban Design for Disaster Risk Reduction Database
User’s Manualhttps://isdm.lab.irides.tohoku.ac.jp/english/archi-drr/
Ver.1.0（2022/10/10）

1．Purpose and Overview of the Architecture and Urban Design for Disaster Risk Reduction
Database (Archi-DRR DB)
Regardless of the period, in disaster areas, cities have been regenerated through new initiatives
based on the lessons learned from past disasters. In addition, there are characteristic villages that
respond to disasters unique to regions all over the world and are deeply related to the climate, suchas the traditional village of Okinawa with impressive white plaster and red brick roofs. Archi-DRR
DB principally manages examples of Architecture and Urban Design that respond to disasters
around the world, and it aims to provide information to domestic and foreign stakeholders,
researchers, tourists, school educators, etc. involved in disaster countermeasures.
Each case is systematized from the perspective of disaster science and consists of Location(linked to Google Maps), Construction Era/Year, Triggering Disaster Classification, Targeting
Disaster Classification, Purpose in the Systematic Disaster Life Cycle (Mitigation / Preparedness /Response / Recovery / Prediction and Early Warning / Damage Assessment / Information andCommunication / Information Sharing and Education / DRR Base Facility not Constructed in a
Post-Disaster Recovery Process / Others), Spatial Scale Classification (Architectural Element /Building Unit / Building Cluster / Infrastructure / Landscape / Open Space / District / Monument/Others, including Intangible Assets), Explanation, References. In addition, disasters are classified
into Primary Item (Wind-related Disasters / Water-related Disasters / Fire-related Disasters / Earthrelated Disasters) and Secondary Item (Storm and Flood / Extreme Climatic Event / Snow,Freezing, and Lightning / Ground Deformation / Earthquakes / Volcanic Disaster / Tsunami /Explosion / Fire / Leakage / Toxicosis / Structural Collapse / Break Down / Traffic Accident /Environmental Pollution / Human Error and Fatal Accident / Others).
By systematically aggregating cases of Architecture and Urban Design that respond to disasters
around the world, users can collect information regarding their purpose and by linking the databasewith Google Maps, people can query information for on-site inspection.

12．Database Composition(1) Basic Information and Disaster Classification
The database is structured as shown in Table 1.
The location of each case is gradually narrowed down from world regions to district names. Asfor the construction era/year, cases of Ground motion-resistant structures in the Nara and Heianperiods, such as the pillars of the Shosoin of Todaiji Temple, are also covered, Past periods up to theReiwa period (Japan only) are included with labeled Christian eras. In addition, since there arecases that do not exist already, such as burning down due to disasters and temporary structuresduring subsequent reconstruction, the presence or absence of them is also included.
“Triggering Disaster Classification” is the disaster that triggered the construction of the case,along with the “Specific Related Disaster”. "Targeting Disaster Classification" indicates the type ofdisaster for which a space is created.
Disasters are classified into "Primary Item" and "Secondary Item". The incubation of disasters is
inseparable from the behavior of substances that cause hazards. Therefore, "Primary Item" classifies
disasters into 4 elements that constitute all things: Wind, Water, Fire, and Earth. A more specificdisaster classification is "Secondary Item". Including accidents, it is divided into 17 categories here.
Table 1 Database Composition
IDTitleKeywords
Location: Region / Country / Prefecture/Province/State / Municipality / District
Construction Era/Year / A.D. / Existing Status
Triggering Disaster Classification:<Primary Item>
Wind-related Disasters / Water-related Disasters / Fire-related Disasters / Earth-related Disasters<Secondary Item>
Storm and Flood / Extreme Climatic Event / Snow, Freezing, and Lightning / Ground Deformation / Earthquakes / Volcanic Disaster/ Tsunami / Explosion / Fire / Leakage / Toxicosis / Structural Collapse / Break Down/Traffic Accident / Environmental Pollution /Human Error and Fatal Accident / Others
Targeting Disaster Classification: Same as above
Related Disaster
Purpose in the Systematic Disaster Life Cycle:
01．Mitigation: Environmental Mitigation / Structural Mitigation / Landuse Mitigation
02．Preparedness
03．Response: Evacuation / Evacuation (Vertical) / Evacuation (Horizontal) / Open Space / Shelter
04．Recovery: Sheltering Place / Temporary Housing / Temporary Complex / Permanent Housing / Post-disaster Memorial Park /Post-disaster Memorial/Monument / DRR Education Facilities / Disaster Remains / City Hall / Commercial Facilities / Industrial
Base / Transportation Facilities / Educational/Cultural Facilities / Community Base / Others
05．Prediction and Early Warning
06．Damage Assessment
07．Information and Communication
08．Information Sharing and Education
09．DRR Base Facility not Constructed in a Post-disaster Recovery Process
10．Others
Spatial Scale Classification:
Architectural Element / Building Unit / Building Cluster / Infrastructure / Landscape / Open Space / District / Monument / Others,
including Intangible Assets
Explanation
Map/Coordinate
Photo
Document
Drawing
References(2) Disaster Life Cycle2This database covers Architecture and Urban Design that respond to disasters around the world.
In the field of disaster management, there is a concept called Disaster Life Cycle. This means thatwhen a certain area is hit by a disaster, after going through the disaster emergency response stage, itreaches the stage of recovery and reconstruction, and then takes 2 disaster prevention measures(damage prevention and advance preparation for damage reduction) in preparation for the next
disaster (Figure 1). There are 4 basic phases in this cycle. 1) Mitigation, 2) Preparedness, 3)
Response, and 4) Recovery/Reconstruction. This is explained below, starting from the stage of premeasures to prepare for disasters.
1) Mitigation
In normal times, it is necessary to prepare for the next hazard and take actions to prevent damage
with financial and technical feasible extents. This is Mitigation. It is an effort to prevent damage
from being caused by external forces, and it is also called "Hard Bosai" because it mainly takes
preventive measures on the physical environment.
2) Preparedness
Even if the physical environment is prepared to mitigate the damage, if the external force of ahazard becomes greater than the damage deterrence, a disaster will occur. It is also necessary toprepare in advance so that even if damage is suffered, it should be minimized. This is a preparation
task for damage mitigation, also called “Soft Bosai”. It is necessary to implement disasterprevention measures with a well-balanced combination of "Mitigation" and "Preparedness"according to the economic conditions of society and regional characteristics.
3) Response
Damage occurs when the impact of a hazard hits urbanized areas, and the external force exceeds
the damage deterrence prepared in advance. This is a disaster. Due to the impact, the ground shapechanges, social infrastructure and structures are destroyed, and the impact spreads to humancasualties. In the immediate aftermath of a disaster, regardless of the position of the local
government or residents, emergency response such as lifesaving and rescue operations andfirefighting activities are taken to minimize the damage by making full use of the preparations thathave been made in advance. This is the phase of disaster response.
4) Recovery/Reconstruction
After dealing with the immediate disaster outcome, it enters the phase of recovery andreconstruction. In the immediate aftermath of a disaster, damaged systems are restored to ensure aminimum level of social life. After short-term recovery has been achieved and if the damage isdevastating, a reconstruction phase begins to create a new urban system. Reconstruction is basicallya long-term process that lasts from a few years to a dozen years. During this long process, victims
or communities gradually acquire a sense of normality. This is called long-term recovery, or“absolute recovery”. Then, preparation for the next disaster is essential from 2 aspects of disasterprevention: 1) Mitigation and 2) Preparedness.
Accompanying the above 4 basic aspects are 5) Prediction and Early Warning, 6) Damage
Assessment, and 7) Information and Communication.
5) Prediction and Early Warning
A disaster is caused by a certain external force. Earthquakes can occur suddenly without warning.
However, the movement of typhoons can be predicted based on advance weather information,
making it possible to take countermeasures before a typhoon hits an area directly. The necessaryelements for this are Prediction and Early Warning. When an earthquake occurs in the ocean floor, a3

tsunami may be predicted providing enough time for evacuation. Similarly, when a storm and flood
damage occur, early warnings are of great significance. In addition, Earthquake Early Warning
system has also been prepared for sudden earthquakes. Research is being conducted on how toreduce the damage to human lives by using the short timeframes, from when the P wave is felt until
the S wave arrives, with drills being conducted in various places.
6) Damage Assessment
In the immediate aftermath of a disaster, it is necessary to grasp the overall picture of the damage
and the degree of damage in each area as soon as possible to proceed with the emergency
correspondence more appropriately. This is Damage Assessment. By roughly estimating thedamage, it is possible to estimate the activities to be corresponded to and physical/human resourcesthat can be invested, and to implement appropriate disaster responses.
7) Information and Communication
It is important to have various types of information in the event of a disaster, as well as
cooperation with regions that serve as disaster prevention bases. However, disasters, disasterprevention, information and communication also have many aspects. It depends on the position,purpose, and each situation. Information and Communication are positioned as Perimeter (dottedline) in Disaster Life Cycle (Figure 1) because they become important elements in different ways ineach phase of disaster responses.
Figure 1 shows how each aspect in Disaster Life Cycle above corresponds to various spaces. In
addition to the 7 aspects listed here, the database also includes the following 3 spatialclassifications.
8) Information Sharing and Education
It is a facility established for the purpose of sharing lessons and records from the disaster withsociety after the reconstruction process.
9) DRR Base Facility not Constructed in a Post-disaster Recovery Process
It is a facility established to serve as a base for disaster prevention activities, regardless of therecovery or reconstruction process, in areas that have not been affected by the disaster.
10) Others
Items that do not fall under any of the above categories are classified here.

4Figure 1 Relationship between Disaster Life Cycle and Architecture/Urban Design(3) Spatial Scale Classification
Architecture and Urban Design vary in scale from certain functions within buildings suitable fordisaster prevention to urban redevelopment for disaster mitigation. In this database, spaces
corresponding to each stage of disaster correspondence are defined as "Architecture and Urban
Design for Disaster Risk Reduction" and categorized as Architectural Element / Building Unit /Building Cluster (Villages) / Infrastructure / Landscape / Open Space / District / Monument /Others.
【Architectural Element】
A part of a building that has a disaster mitigation function, such as "Udatsu" that prevents thespread of fire to neighboring areas.
【Building Unit】
A space that corresponds to disasters as a single building, like a raised-floor house built to avoidflooding.
【Building Cluster (Villages)】
A space with a defense or disaster prevention function as Building Cluster (Village), such as
moated settlement in Yamatokoriyama City, Nara Prefecture, which functioned for defense during
the Sengoku period.

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【Infrastructure】
Structures other than buildings built for the purpose of land management and conservation,
public convenience, and disaster prevention. Dams, embankments, etc.
【Landscape】
There are also spaces created by natural environmental elements, such as windbreak forests,
which contrast with buildings as structures. In this way, Landscape is defined as the various
elements of urban spaces and landscaped spaces that make up sceneries other than structures. They
are related to topography, green space, and waterfront space.
【Open Space】
Open spaces and plazas with no particular purpose as urban voids.
【District】
A place that functions as a whole space with a certain scale.
【Monument】
A statue or other structure monuments created to pass down the situation and lessons of disasters tofuture generations.
【Others, including Intangible Assets】
Anything not included in the above categories comes here. Examples include things that nolonger exist as a physical environment but are recorded as memories or information.
(4) Other Information
In addition to explanations based on the above basic information, this database also provides
location information on Google Maps, as well as images/photographs, documents, and drawings.
References are also provided where necessary.
*Reference: Osamu Murao, "Architecture/Space/Disaster" Risk Engineering Series 10, CoronaPublishing, 20136

3. How to use Archi-DRR DB（1） Home page
If you enter a keyword in the search field on the home page, search results will be displayed. Inaddition, you can 1) Search by detailed information and 2) Search on the map. They are explainedbelow.

7(2) 1) Search by detailed information (When searching by Iwate Prefecture / Miyako City / Taro)
Click “Detailed Information” and the following screen will appear. This screen corresponds to theclassification described in 2. Database Composition. Select and enter conditions according to yourpurpose and search. Here, "Iwate Prefecture / Miyako City / Taro" is entered in the "Location" column.

8(3) 2) Search on the map (Around Taro district)
People may visit Taro area for sightseeing. If they have already decided to go to the Taro area,
which has been rebuilt from the Great East Japan Earthquake, but there is also the possibility of "They
don't know what kind of facility is in what kind of area" situation. In such cases, searching by map isconvenient. Since the map uses Google Map, you can see what is around by clicking on the place youwant to go and expanding it.
If you find a place of interest, click the pin there, and the name of the point and the URL of thedata will be displayed as shown in the images below.

9(4) Search Result List
If you perform 1) Search by detailed information or 2) Search on the map, the following search
results will be displayed. Look through this list and when you find a target case, click on it. Move tothe data screen for each case. Here, let's select "Great Coastal Levee in Taro".

10(5) Search results (in the case of "Great Coastal Levee in Taro")
The data for "Great Coastal Levee in Taro" will be displayed as a search result.

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(6) Enlarged display of the clicked image
Images are also included in the data. Click on the thumbnail image that interests you to enlarge theimage as shown below. You can return to previous screen or home page using the buttons on the left
and right of the bottom of the screen.

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