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Flashcards in Japanese Tsunami Case Study Deck (17)
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1
Q

What kind of fault caused the Tohoku earthquake?

A

A thrust fault

2
Q

Between which plates was the fault which caused the tohoku earthquake?

A

North American and Pacific plates (the Pacific plate subducts beneath the the North American plate)

3
Q

What factor contributed to the shallow focus of the Tohoku earthquake?

A

The fact that it was a thrust fault

4
Q

What time and date did the Tohoku earthquake occur?

A

14:46 local time on the 3rd march 2011

5
Q

How far offshore of the Oshika peninsula was the epicentre?

A

20km to the east

6
Q

What was the magnitude of the Tohoku earthquake?

A

9.0

7
Q

How many foreshocks were there prior to the Tohoku earthquake?

A

7

8
Q

How strong was one of the foreshocks?

A

One was magnitude 7.2 2 days before the 9.0 earthquake

9
Q

How many after shocks were there of the Tohoku earthquake?

A

1235 many of which were over M7.0 and 800 of which were over 4.5

10
Q

Name 4 factors which made Japan vulnerable to tsunamis

A
  1. Japan is highly vulnerable to earthquakes
  2. Due to its mountainous terrain the majority of the Japanese population live on the coast
  3. The upper 10 M of the soil is vulnerable to liquefaction
  4. The Fukushima nuclear plant is located on the coast of Japan
11
Q

How good is Japan’s capacity to cope with earthquakes/tsunamis?

A
  1. The Japanese meteorological agency detected p waves and issued televised warnings before S waves hit
  2. The tsunami was predicted 3 minutes after the earthquake, giving people 20 minutes to get to safety
  3. Japan’s life safe buildings reduced damage from the earthquake
12
Q

How good is Japan’s institutional capacity?

A
  1. Army and emergency crews on site very quickly
  2. People are trained yearly on 1st September on how to survive an earthquake- as a result of the 1923 Tokyo quake
  3. Huge GDP per capita of $34000 as of 2011
  4. 3rd biggest economy in the world
  5. 40% of the coastline has a sea wall of up to 10m high
  6. The JMA has 200 seismographs and 600 seismic intensity readers
13
Q

What were the social impacts of the Tohoku earthquake+tsunami?

A
  1. People were evacuated in a 20km radius around the Fukushima nuclear plant
  2. 18,854 dead
  3. 26,992 injured
  4. 3,155 missing
  5. Elderly worst affected
  6. 4.4 million in NE Japan without power
  7. 1.5 million without water
14
Q

What were the economic impacts of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami?

A
  1. Fukushima went into meltdown
  2. 130,000 buildings collapsed
  3. 700,000 buildings partially damaged
  4. $235 billion damage
  5. Insured losses of $14.5-34.6 billion
  6. Bank of Japan offered 15 trillion yen to stabilise the markets
15
Q

What were the environmental impacts of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami?

A
  1. Island of Honshu moved 2.4m east

2. Waves reached up to 40m in height

16
Q

What were the immediate responses to the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami?

A
  1. 340,000 people were displaced and needed catering for
  2. 20 minutes wasn’t enough warning for some to escape
  3. Japanese government sent self defence forces
  4. Japanese Red Cross reported $1 billion of donations
17
Q

What were the long term impacts of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami?

A
  1. Just 6 days after the quake a damaged motorway had been repaired
  2. Japan had recovered incredibly 1 year on
  3. Japanese government spent $50 billion on rebuilding