Archive · 9 Aug 2026
Tokyo unveils underground missile shelter plan near Tokyo Station
The city government of Tokyo, the capital of Japan, has a plan to build a safe room underground where people can hide if a missile is ever fired at the city.
Missiles are long rockets that can fly very far and carry explosives.
Some countries nearby have been testing missiles a lot lately, and Japan wants to be ready just in case.
The safe room will be built in a big parking garage under a street called Yaesu Dori Avenue, right next to Tokyo Station.
Tokyo Station is a very busy train station where lots of people come and go every day.
The garage has two underground floors and covers about as much space as two soccer fields.
City leaders are also thinking about adding special doors to protect people from blast waves and falling buildings.
The person in charge of Tokyo, Governor Yuriko Koike, said the spot was chosen because so many people gather near the station.
She said the missile tests by North Korea are a very serious threat to Japan.
The city wants to keep everyone safe and plans to start detailed surveys this year.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government unveiled plans for a missile shelter in an underground parking facility near Tokyo Station.
The shelter would occupy the first and second basement levels beneath Yaesu Dori Avenue, covering about 13,000 square meters.
Governor Yuriko Koike said the site was chosen because it is close to Tokyo Station, the capital's gateway, where many people gather outdoors.
The plan comes as North Korea has accelerated missile testing, including a suspected ballistic missile launch on Thursday, and China expands its arsenal.
Koike called North Korea's repeated missile launches "an extremely serious and grave threat" to Japan's peace and security.
- Who
- Tokyo Metropolitan Government and Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike
- What
- Announced plans to build a missile shelter in an underground parking facility near Tokyo Station, with special blast doors under discussion
- When
- Plans recently unveiled; detailed surveys for the renovation to begin this fiscal year
- Where
- Tokyo, Japan — an underground parking garage beneath Yaesu Dori Avenue near Tokyo Station
- Why
- To protect people from ballistic missile attacks amid North Korea's accelerated missile testing and China's expanding arsenal of advanced weaponry
- Announced by
- Tokyo Metropolitan Government / Governor Yuriko Koike
- Location
- Underground parking garage beneath Yaesu Dori Avenue, near Tokyo Station
- Floor area
- About 13,000 square meters
- Basement levels
- 1st and 2nd basement levels
- Reason
- North Korea's missile launches and China's expanding arsenal
- Trigger event
- Suspected ballistic missile launch by North Korea on Thursday
- Next steps
- Detailed surveys this fiscal year; discussions on special blast doors