An expert has warned that living conditions at evacuation centers that opened following the Noto Peninsula earthquake in central Japan threaten the health of people staying there. He is calling for swift improvements.

Ueda Shinsaku at Japanese Red Cross Ishinomaki Hospital, who heads the Society for Disaster Shelter and Refuge Life, visited the hardest-hit Ishikawa Prefecture with eight staff members of the hospital from last Thursday to Sunday. They worked at three evacuation centers in Suzu City.

Ueda said seniors account for more than 90 percent of people staying at some shelters, and that many evacuees are sleeping on blankets and sheets on the floor. He said they keep their shoes on indoors to ward off the cold.

Ueda pointed out that wearing shoes indoors raises the risk of developing pneumonia and other diseases because people may inhale dust from shoes while sleeping.

Ueda said his team persuaded evacuees at one shelter to refrain from wearing their shoes inside, and that they asked local officials at each center to set aside a room where children can play.

Ueda said many of the disaster-related deaths were caused by poor living conditions in shelters, based on the experience of the huge earthquake that hit northeastern Japan in 2011 and other cases.

He added that support is also needed to improve the living environment and hygiene conditions of people who are staying in places other than shelters, such as their homes.