Japanese Fire Drill

The Chinese fire drill. This involves stopping at a red light and everyone running around the car and making it back in before the light turns green.

The Japanese fire drill. I experienced the Japanese fire drill last week. I have to share it because it is rather different from the fire drills we have at home. I was laughing. So - this is what happens. Their version of a fire drill goes off and an administrator goes running out of the school with a huge flag. All the students, come running as fast as they can out of the school, across the soccer field. Of course, I was told I needed to participate too, so there I am running with the other teachers as fast as we can away from the fire. I was laughing, hysterically. Just imagine a whole school running!

Following the run out, there were some speeches in Japanese that obviously I couldn't understand. Followed by a fire extinguisher demonstration whereby, students practiced. A few more speeches by the fire department and it ended. The whole ordeal took nearly an hour.

The administration asked me if it is the same in America. I answered No, and tried to explain with my limited Japanese and gestures - just what we do in America. I suppose, even though I laugh at the Japanese fire drill. They probably think our fire drills are wierd too. We walk, single filed, no talking out of a burning building. I understand the reasoning behind this is to ensure no one panics - but to walk, quietly out of a burning building does seem a bit more unreasonable than running as fast as you can, screaming fire, out of a burning building. They also thought it was strange that our students don't practice using fire extinguishers. Which, thinking about it, I agree...it is kind of stupid that our students don't receive demonstrations on how to extinguish a fire.

So, that, my friends and family, is a Japanese fire drill. Run as quickly as you can out the building. I think it's funny, but maybe it's one of those things where you have to be there.

Until then...