Earthquake Chronicle
Mei Masuyama 8G
May. 4 th . 2011
Japan is a country where many tectonic plates are clashing into each other. There is the
“ Philippine Sea Plate beneath the continental American Plate and Okinawa Plate to the south, and subduction of the Pacific Plate under the Okhotsk Plate to the north.” An earthquake of shindo (a
Japanese seismic scale) is occurring almost every day, yet we don’t feel most of them. However, there have been times when huge earthquakes have struck Japan, such as the Kanto Daishinsai in
1923, the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai in 1995, the Chuetsu Jishin in 2004, and the Higashi-Nihon
Daishinsai in 2011. In particular, this chronicle will focus on the differences between the
Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai and the Higashi-Nihon Daishinsai, which consist of the two deadlier earthquakes in the Japan’s history.
There are five major differences that account for empirically assessing an earthquake’s devastation: size, number of deaths, location, effects, the reaction of the county, and the world’s support. Firstly, the most recent earthquake that struck Japan on March 11, 2011 was larger in magnitude than earthquake that struck Japan in 1995. The Higashi-Nihon Daishinsai was Mw9.0 and the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai was Mw7.3. However, both are considered shindo 7, which is the highest magnitude level an earthquake can receive on a scale of 1-7 A shindo 7 is considered to be very dangerous; over 30% of the houses would have collapsed, landslides would have occurred, the ground would have cracked, and fractures in the Earth crust would have occurred).
Secondly, the Higashi-Nihon Daishinsai has caused more deaths than the
Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai. It has been around 50 days since the earthquake, but it’s already been confirmed that at least 28,500 people have died. Further, it is estimated that, because there are still many people missing from the tsunami, there may be over 75,000 deaths. In contrast, the
Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai had 6,434 deaths, which is much less than the recent earthquake.
The location of each earthquake differed, too. The most recent earthquake was at the east of Japan, whereas the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai was at the west of Japan. Tohoku, and especially Miyagi prefecture, was most devastated by this most recent earthquake. Because it took place on east of
Japan, even Tokyo was greatly affected. On the other hand, with Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai,
Hyogo-ken Kobe-shi was most affected.

The effects of each earthquake were also very different. The earthquake itself was the main cause of deaths during the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai. An estimated 5,000 people, who consist of about 80% of the casualties, died immediately from the collapse of their homes.
Because the earthquake struck during the morning, many people were asleep and did not have a chance to escape. Furthermore, according to a medical examiner, about 2,221 people out of 2,456 people who died in Kobe, which is about 92% of the casualties, died in less than 15 minutes from the collapse. This earthquake also caused fires, though this was not a major threat despite over
6,000 houses having burnt down
In comparison, the effects from the Higashi-Nihon Daishinsai was much more serious.
The most significant difference with this most recent earthquake compared to the Hanshin-Awaji
Daishinsai was the devastating tsunami and the looming threat of radiation. In the Higashi-Nihon
Daishinsai earthquake, most deaths were caused by the tsunami. According to the national police agency, 92.5% of the people had died from drowning because of the tsunami, 4.4% died from the collapse of a building, 1.1% died from the fire, and the last 2% is unknown. These results demonstrate the effect of the tsunami. Because of the tsunami, the nuclear plant in Fukushima had a hydrogen detonation. People who live within 30km of the Fukushima nuclear plant have evacuated and many are living in difficult conditions. Even in Tokyo radiation has been detected in the tap water
Despite these differences between the earthquakes, there have been some similarities, too. Both earthquakes had aftershocks; For the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai including aftershocks that we do not feel (shindo 1), there were more than 3,000 aftershocks in Kobe. Likewise, the recent earthquake has also caused many aftershocks, both big and small in magnitude.
How Japan and other countries responded to each earthquake also differed. The country wasn’t prepared enough for the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai, so the country’s first move was very slow; the government didn’t notice that it was a serious disaster. Even after they recognized the severity of the earthquake, the government did not take any serious measures and continued their regular meetings. This was a big problem and led to significant criticism of the
Japanese government. In contrast, to the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai, the Higashi-Nihon
Daishinsai was able to receive more support from both the country and the world from an earlier stage. From the experience of the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai, the country was more prepared so they were able to act more swiftly. For example, by 15:14, the government made a special group called the “emergency headquarters.” Also, the self-defense force was able to go to the affected areas that same day.

For the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai, Japan didn’t receive much support from other countries right after the earthquake, there were few countries that offered help, and it took them few days until it reached Japan. By, February 9th (23 days after the earthquake) there were a total of 70 countries that offered support and by September, only 44 countries actually supported. On the other hand, the Higashi-Nihon Daishinsai received much more support from other countries.
Unlike the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai incident, in this most recent incident, the government accepted support. By, March 24 th (2 weeks after the earthquake) 17 countries (not including the
American armies in Japan) came to help, and by April 20 th (40 days after the earthquake) 142 countries and 39 international organizations offered help. Many countries, including places like
Tanzania, which is much poorer than Japan, gave money to support.
Also, the celebrities in and out of the country gave great support, too. Inside the country, famous singers such as, AKB48 (over 12 million dollars), SMAP (5 million dollars),
Hikaru Utada (1 million dollars) and, Namie Amuro (600 thousand dollars) donated money. Also.
Famous sports player such as, Ichiro Suzuki (1.2 million dollars), Daisuke Matsuzaka (1 million dollars), and Darvish Yu (600 thousand dollars) donated to earthquake relief. Other huge donations came from the president of Softbank, Mr. Son, who donated 123 million dollars out of his personal expenses. Outside of the country, celebrities such as Taylor Swift (100 million dollars), Lady Gaga (3.6 million dollars), Sandra Bullock (1 million dollars), and Justin Bieber (1 million dollars) also made donations.
In conclusion, there are many differences and similarities between the Hanshin-Awaji
Daishinsai and the Higashi-Nihon Daishinsai. The number of deaths in the recent earthquake,
Higashi-Nihon Daishinsai is much higher than the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai in 1995. The former occurred in the east, whereas the latter happened in the west. Further, the Higashi-Nihon
Daishinsai had more serious effects, such as the tsunami and the nuclear plant accident
. The country and the world’s support also differed The recent earthquake was taken much more seriously, and from the lesson the country learn from the Hanshin-Awaji Daishinsai, they reacted much quicker Despite these differences, both earthquakes had major aftershocks and shindo 7.
Despite Japan being a very dangerous country that is prone to earthquakes because of its geographic location, Japan has become stronger through its historical battles with nature and may serve as a model of hope for countries to follow.

References:
Internet:
" 阪神大震災 阪神・淡路大震災 教訓 阪神大震災の写真 災害画像 ." [ 防災システム
研究所 ] テレビでおなじみ防災アドバイザー山村武彦 安全・安心・防災サイト 現
地調査に学ぶ知識と知恵 . 30 Apr. 2011 <http://www.bo-sai.co.jp/sub6.html>.
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"Donation from famous people." 支 援 金 . 30 Apr. 2011
<http://matome.naver.jp/odai/2130034621250964901>.
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"Japan Civil Network." 東 日 本 大 震 災 支 援 全 国 ネ ッ ト ワ ー ク . 2011. 30 Apr. 2011
<http://www.jpn-civil.net/>.
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"Tohoku-Kanto Daishinsai."
<http://www.asahi.com/special/10005/>.
Asahi.com. 30 Apr. 2011
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" ま と め wiki - 大 震 災 原 発 ま と め ." Www47.atwiki.jp - @wiki server. 30 Apr. 2011
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Book:
Kaihara, Toshitami. Hyōgoken chiji no hanshin awaji daishinsai: jūgonen no kiroku senkyūhyakukyūjūgonen ichigatsu jūnananichi. Tōkyō: Maruzen, 2009.