Japan woke to scenes of havoc, a day after a massive earthquake and tsunami swept away homes and cars, leaving thousands missing. The country has mobilised its self-defence forces to organise an emergency rescue and recovery effort.
Japan's earthquake history
The largest quakes in Japan
- The Great Kanto earthquake of Sept. 1, 1923, (magnitude 7.9) killed nearly 143,000 people and wreaked utter destruction in the Tokyo area.
- On March 2, 1933, a magnitude 8.1 quake off the coast of Honshu caused a large tsunami that killed more than 3,000 people.
- On June 28, 1948 an earthquake measuring 7.3 killed around 3,770 people at Fukui, 28 miles northeast of Kyoto.
- On Jan. 16, 1995, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.3 hit central Japan, devastating the western port city of Kobe. It killed more than 6,430 and caused an estimated $100 billion in damage.
- On Oct. 23, 2004, a 6.8 magnitude quake struck the Niigata region, about 150 miles north of Tokyo, killing 65 people and injuring 3,000.
- On March 25, 2007, a 6.9 magnitude quake struck the Noto peninsula in Ishikawa prefecture, about 300 km west of Tokyo, injuring more than 200 and destroying hundreds of homes.
- On July 16, 2007, a 6.8 magnitude quake struck Niigata prefecture, about 150 miles northwest of Tokyo, killing 11 people and injuring 1,950. The tremor caused radiation leaks at the world's largest nuclear plant.
Date created : 2011-03-12