What Tokyo learned from the tragic 1923 Kanto earthquake

Visitors to the Tokyo Rinkai Disaster Prevention Park see displays on the likely impact of major tremors. (Image: Bloomberg)

Bloomberg

Sun, 03 Sep 2023

By Shoko OdaSept 1 marked a century since a magnitude-7.9 earthquake struck the Kanto region surrounding Tokyo, leaving some 100,000 people dead or missing and much of the city destroyed by fire. Government experts see a 70% chance of a magnitude-7 earthquake taking place right underneath the capital within the next three decades, which could cost 95 trillion yen (NZ$1.08t) in economic damages, according to estimates. That looming threat keeps Tokyo on its toes. Last year it earmarked 15 trillion yen for natural disaster resiliency pr...

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