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On August 7, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended the 17th meeting of the Emergency Response Headquarters for the Heavy Rain in July 2018 at the Prime Minister’s Office.
 
The Prime Minister said in his opening address,
 
“The day before yesterday, I visited some of the affected areas in Hiroshima Prefecture, one month after the disaster. In Higashihiroshima City, work to restore the JR Sanyo Honsen Line and prefectural roads that have collapsed is proceeding at a high pace. Furthermore, in Kure City and Saka Town, which have been buried under large amounts of sediment, strenuous efforts are being made to remove the sediment and disaster-related waste. I would like to once again express my heartfelt respect to everyone involved for their diligent efforts amidst the extreme heat.
 
Amidst the extreme heat, those affected by the recent disaster are being forced to live hard lives as evacuees, full of concern. Construction has started on 490 temporary emergency housing units in the three prefectures of Hiroshima, Okayama and Ehime, approximately 390 units of which are scheduled to be completed by the latter half of this month. We will also continue such efforts to secure the necessary housing so that all those affected can transition away from living at the evacuation centers as quickly as possible. I would like all of you to implement the recently compiled support package, paying attention to the speed, and exert every effort towards restoration and reconstruction of the disaster areas, including rebuilding people’s lives and restoring ‘nariwai (occupations and livelihoods that sustain people’s daily lives).’ I also ask all of you to offer your maximum support for the removal of accumulated sediment and the dredging of rivers as much as possible before the typhoon season enters into full swing, regardless of whether the affected sites are managed nationally or prefecturally.
 
The powerful Typhoon No. 13^* is approaching the Kanto region, and there is concern that it could strike the region. In addition to the impact of the storm front, which brought record heavy-rains to Yamagata Prefecture and other areas, there is also concern that the heavy rains and strong winds could continue for a longer period due to the slow movement of the typhoon. I ask you to maintain the utmost vigilance. A short while ago, Minister of State for Disaster Management Okonogi convened an Inter-Agency Disaster Alert Meeting, and reinforced the level of vigilance. Leveraging the experience you have accumulated from dealing with the recent heavy rain event, I ask you to disseminate the relevant information, without worrying that it might ultimately have been unnecessary, in a manner that is easy to understand and will encourage people to evacuate as soon as possible and proactively provide support to the municipalities’ responses, such as securing evacuation centers and improving living conditions in these centers.
 
I also ask all citizens to stay tuned to the latest weather, disaster, and other relevant information, and be mindful of evacuating as early as possible.”
 
^*Typhoon Shanshan