a large white building sitting next to a lush green park

In the Shirahige-Higashi Housing Complex, the devastating 1923 earthquake left many dead due to the surrounding land being a sandbar, leaving no escape routes. To address this, the entire complex was constructed in 1972, designed to act as a 1.1 km-long firewall to offer refuge for its inhabitants. Every building gap is equipped with fire doors and shutters, with the residential balconies similarly fitted with fire shutters. Throughout the area, water cannons have been set up to counteract fire outbreaks, and atop the complex, water storage tanks have been placed for firefighting purposes.