Japan - Hell on Earth , livre ebook

Title Page

JAPAN
HELL ON EARTH: 2011


By
Paul Andrews

Publisher Information

Japan: Hell On Earth 2011 published in 2011 by
Andrews UK Limited
www.andrewsuk.com

This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior written consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published, and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

Copyright © 2011 Paul Andrews

The right of Paul Andrews to be identified as author of this book has been asserted in accordance with section 77 and 78 of the Copyrights Designs and Patents Act 1988.

The quotes and facts from this book were drawn from public domain sources, actual facts and figures quoted on published material across the globe, and from various documentary sources also all within the public domain / transmission.
Whilst ever care has been taken to ensure all fact and figures are correct, the author or publisher cannot be held responsible for any errors in this publication.
All images used are either believed to be in the public domain or have been attributed where necessary. Every effort has been made to verify image rights, however please contact the publisher to advise if any corrections are required.

Dedication

Thanks to my wife in particular, and love to all of my family.

Introduction

At approximately 2.46pm local time on the 11 th March 2011, a massive earthquake with a magnitude of 8.9 hit the Pacific Ocean nearby North-eastern Japan.
Humongous damage was caused with fires, power outages and blackouts, and tsunamis. Another major set of problems were the issues caused at the nuclear power plants.
This quick-read guide will attempt to give an overview of what happened, background information of the natural phenomenon which causes earthquakes and some history of similar incidents in this region. We also look at what might happen next in the immediate and near future, both locally and globally because of this terrible tragedy.
This guide is being written as events unfold, but will attempt to include the latest known facts at the time of writing. It can only attempt to show a brief overview and snapshot in time of the events, but hopefully gives a valuable insight into a wide range of topics pertinent to the events.
At the time of writing, the rescue efforts are still ongoing, and huge amounts of humanitarian aid is needed. There is the threat of a second large earthquake potentially in the next few days with a tsunami caused by that. This, of course, and also the ongoing nuclear crisis at the nuclear power plants. Therefore whilst this guide is as up to date as possible, it can only ever serve to be a snapshot in time of events which have happened between the 11 th and 16 th of March 2011.


Japan’s Largest Ever Quake
Image courtesy of Sam Churchill



The Initial Quake

At approximately 2.46pm local time on the 11 th March 2011, Japan went about its normal business on a Friday afternoon.
Suddenly an earthquake hit the region of North East Japan with one of the biggest cities in the region, Sendai, being hit. The epicentre of the quake was believed to have been around six miles beneath the seabed, some 80 miles off the East coast of Japan.


Shake Map of Region

The earthquake originated in the Japan Trench, which is where the Pacific Plate is subducting underneath the Okhotsk Plate.
The quake initiated a tsunami alert around the whole of the Pacific rim. The tsunami created a large wall of water around 30 feet high which was travelling in the region of 500 miles an hour. This speed is the same speed at which a passenger jet flies. The wave was still around 10 foot in height when it reached the coastline of Hawaii which was approximately 3900 miles away from the epicentre.
The earthquake itself had been preceded by several large foreshocks which started with a large shock on the 9 th of March 2011, followed by three slightly smaller ones the same day.
The quake was detected around one minute before it hit by the Japan earthquake early warning system. This system has around 1000 seismometers monitoring the earth for quakes and they automatically sent out a warning on the TV system in Japan. This is believed to have saved many lives, just by having that few seconds of early warning to the population.
The earthquake was the fifth biggest since records began, and was much larger than one of the worst which Japan had previously had called the ‘Great Kanto’ quake of 1923. That quake was of the magnitude of 7.9 and was a terrible disaster which killed more than 140,000 people in the region of Tokyo and the surrounding area.
This earth quake of 2011 is almost certainly the largest to ever hit Japan, and possibly the largest quake within the region of the Pacific and North American tectonic plates for over 1200 years.