Examination of Disaster Risk at Baseball Grounds : Focused on the Kyushu and Okinawa Region

Baseball is the most popular sport in Japan. Baseball is also attracting attention as a tourism resource. According to a survey of 12 professional baseball grounds, more than two-thirds of are at risk of natural disasters. Local baseball grounds, other than professional baseball grounds, are also considered to be at risk of disaster. We used hazard maps to analyze the disaster risk of baseball grounds. The Kyushu and Okinawa area produce the largest number of professional baseball players outside of densely populated areas. Due to the high average temperature, baseball stadiums can be used during most of the year. In fact, many professional baseball teams use Kyushu and Okinawa for their spring training. Therefore, we focused on the Kyushu and Okinawa region, where baseball is popular and major. As a result, it was found that not only professional baseball grounds but also local baseball grounds are at risk of sediment-related disasters, floods, tsunamis and storm surges.