Natural disasters Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Natural disasters - Essay Example Earthquakes manifest themselves on the surface of the earth by shaking and at times displacing the ground. There is a long history of seismic activity and earthquakes in Japan .Japan is a region characterized by high seismicity due to its location which is near main tectonic plate borders and is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire. Geologically the Japanese islands are as a consequence of many big oceanic movements taking place more than hundreds of millions of years ago. Originally Japan was attached to the Eurasian continent’s eastern coast. Since the Eurasian plates were less deep than the subducting plates, Japan was pulled eastwards forming the Sea of japan about fifteen million years ago (Smits,2014). Whereas on 23 August 416, an earthquake is mentioned in Yamato(present day Nara the Prefecture) initial earthquake to be dependably recorded occurred on28 May,599 in Nara prefecture ,during Empress Suiko’s reign, damaging buildings through the entire Yamato province. Several other historical accounts of earthquakes occurrences exist and with the creation of Imperial Earthquake Investigation Committee in 1892, systematic collation of all available data was conducted and in 1899 published. The committee was suspended in 1923 after the occurrence of the Kanto earthquake and in 1925 and the Earthquake Research Institute superseded it (Clancey, 2006). The Kanto earthquake that occurred in 1923 is one of the deadliest in the history of Japan claiming about 105,385 deaths, whereas the Tohuku earthquake in 2011 is the costliest (USD 235 billion) and strongest earthquake on record. It is also the most costly natural disaster to occur globally to date. There are numerous other earthquakes that have occurred and have been recorded in the history of Japan. Nevertheless, the Tohuku earthquake of 11th march 2011 is the strongest in