Local - Kobe, Japan Flashcards
What caused the 1995 earthquake in Kobe, Japan?
6.8 magnitude
Epicenter was only 20km away from the central city
What were the effects of the 1995 earthquake in Kobe, Japan?
Cost $100 billion
Over 6,000 killed
Over 35,000 injured
What was the risk and vulnerability of the 1995 earthquake in Kobe, Japan?
Felt as if they were well prepared due to wealth and research, however they were still caught unprepared
Too many old traditional houses with heavy tiles on roofs (to withstand typhoons) but many of these tiles killed and injured people - many houses had not been retrofitted either
Hadn’t had a serious earthquake for 400 years and some had not maintained enough emergency supplies
How had the people of Kobe recovered in the short term after the 1995 earthquake in Kobe, Japan?
Infrastructure was repaired within months
48,000 housing units had been supplied within several months
70% of port operations were restored in one year
All of debris was removed within a short time and used as landfill
15 months after manufacturing output was up to 96% of what it had been prior
How did the Japanese government respond in the long term to the 1995 earthquake in Kobe, Japan?
Policy towards disaster stricken areas called ‘Disaster Management in Japan’ with the objective of;
providing recovery and reconstruction to aid victims to return to normal life, restore facilities to prevent disasters in the future
Implementing development plans that focus on safety
making sure recovery and reconstruction is as swift and smooth as possible
How did the city council respond to the 1995 earthquake in Kobe, Japan?
Improved seismic resistance of existing buildings (retrofitting)
Improving firefighting capacity - exploring all possible sources for extinguishing fires
Protecting lifelines - backup systems e.g. telecommunications, constructing a duplicate fibre optic system
Community participation
Encouraging NGO’s
Disaster resistant measures - firebreaks along rivers and roadways, mountain greenbelt to reduce landslides and new canal system to ensure reliable water supply
