Recently the most powerful earthquake to hit the nation in recorded history struck Japan. It did not only end there but instead set free to a tsunami. The 8.9- magnitude earthquake struck the coast of Japan killing hundreds of people.

According to CNN, Andy Clark a witness outside Tokyo mentioned how “the earth shook with such ferocity”. He himself had started to get used to earthquakes during his 20 years in Japan. Clark terrified “thought things were coming to an end”.

The damage caused by this earthquake collapsed building and ignited fires, killing and misplacing tens of thousands of people. The approximate number of people missing has not yet been revealed. Kyodo a news agency reported how the death told would pass 1,000. Around 60,000 to 70,000 people were being evacuated.

CNN mentioned how the “quake toppled cars of bridges and into waters underneath. Waves of debris flowed like lava across farmland, pushing boars, houses and trailers in their path”. This was not it the quake also affected air travel. Kyodo the news agency in Tokyo mentioned how 13,00 people were stranded at the Narita airport and 10,000 at the Haneda airport.

But is this the end of it? Is Japan ready for a similar disaster?

The “Great Tokai Earthquake” is a predicted disaster southwest of Tokyo. Japan indicates how it has spent trillions of yen preparing for this disaster. The country has warned its citizens since 1976, about a 8.0 quake, which would be off the coast of Shizuoka prefecture, which is located about 100 miles southeast of Tokyo.

The cause of this earthquake is a build up from over 150 years. Since there has not been a major earthquake along the plates that collide off the Shizuoka’s coastline, the building up of the energy for a really long time will eventually release in an earthquake. This warning has already been mentioned to the citizens of Japan. Instead they have been handed a 14 PG guidebook by the Japanese government on the Tokai earthquake theory. Earthquakes have not been a surprise to them, but this one was. Scientists cannot particularly predict when an earthquake will occur in Japan, but they can be very certain about where it will occur.

Geophysicist Morgan Moschetti with the National Earthquake Information Center mentions how “generally we can give ideas where this will happen based on history… but… we can’t predict the times of earthquakes”. He also mentions how they can predict how every earthquake has a potential of releasing many after shocks. The one that just took place on Friday still has a potential of releasing many other after shocks.

Japan’s tendency of earthquakes is a cause of its location. Which is located in an area where several continental and oceanic plates meet. Japan-guide mentions how “if earthquakes occur below or close to the ocean, they may trigger tidal waves, tsunami”.

Is Japan prepared for another one?  Is Japan a safe island to live on?

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Jineta Raval

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