In June 1960 during the Prime Ministership of Nobusuke Kishi, the decision was made that September 1 would become Disaster Prevention Day in order to reduce the death toll from disasters. One year after the 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake the Japanese government declared the anniversary date of January 17 to be Disaster Response Volunteers Day (防災とボランティアの日, bousai to borantia no hi).