2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, Japan Flashcards
What caused the earthquake?
A magnitude 9 earthquake occurred under the Pacific Ocean, 100km east of Sendai.
A 400km - 500km segment of the North America Plate which was being dragged down by the subducting Pacific plate, suddenly slipped upwards of 5 - 10 meters, causing water displacement and a tsunami to form.
There were 10 waves about 1 km apart as they reached the shallower coastal water. They slowed and piled up, reaching 10m in height.
This overwhelmed the defences and surged up to 10km inland.
Primary effects
Ground shaking caused buildings to collapse.
The Tsunami swept inland, mainly along the north-east coast, causing devastation to everything in its path - boats, buildings, vehicles and trees.
When the waters receded, whole cities were in ruins. Trains had vanished and ships and boats were displaced.
In Tokyo damage to skyscrapers was limited due to their earthquake proof design.
Over 18 000 were dead or missing, mainly due to the tsunami, although Japan’s tsunami system saved many lived.
Secondary effects
Half a million people were homeless. For weeks, 150000 people lived in temporary shelters.
Over 1 million homes were left without running water and almost 6 million homes lost their electricity supply.
There were shortages of food, water, petrol and medical supplies.
In the two weeks after the earthquake, there were more than 700 aftershocks, causing concern and further damage.
Fears of a nuclear disaster caused panic selling across global stock markets.
Immediate responses
In freezing temperatures, survivors huddled in shelters and hoarded supplies as rescue workers searched for survivors.
Helicopter crews saved survivors from rooftops and flooded farmland.
100 000 soldiers were mobilised to establish order, organise rescue work and distribute blankets, bottled water, food and petrol.
Offers of aid from other countries including China and the USA.
The Fukushima Daiichi explosions prompted a government- ordered shutdown of the majority of Japanese nuclear power plants.
Long term-responses
Japan coped well with the earthquake. But the tsunami defences were inadequate against the extraordinary height and force of the water.
In 2013 Japan unveiled a new, upgraded tsunami warning system because many people had underestimated their personal risk and assumed that the tsunami would be smaller than previously expected.
Court orders brought about by anti-nuclear groups have meant that it was only in 2016 that reactors were issued with licenses to restart.
