News Article

Japanese Earthquake Causes Huge Damage

An earthquake hit Japan on September 1, 1923. The earthquake was located near Kanto, Japan. Kanto is located at 35.3˚N, 139.5˚E. Kanto is a region near Tokyo. The earthquake had an incredible magnitude of 7.9 and an intensity of 10. The epicenter was located under Sagami Bay, just southwest of Tokyo Bay. It is one of the worst earthquakes ever recorded, and has come to be known as the Great Tokyo Earthquake, Great Tokyo Fire, and Great Kanto Earthquake.
There was severe damage to property and peoples’ lives caused by the massive earthquake. Roughly 100,000 people died. About 30,000 to 40,000 went missing and were presumed dead. Hundreds of thousands of others were left homeless, with no possessions left to call their own. Firestorms raged throughout the town, and they partially or completely destroyed about 381,000 out of 694,000 homes. A lot of other factories, restaurants, and other workplaces we destroyed. Many buildings and items within these buildings were made of highly flammable materials, which didn’t help the situation. Water mains broke, causing usually well-prepared firefighters to have difficulties keeping the fire under control.
The damage was the worst at Yokohama, another region near Tokyo. There was also a lot of damage to the Boso and Izu peninsulas and the O-shima. A 6ft permanent uplift was caused on the north shore of Sagami Bay, where the earthquake originated. There was also horizontal displacement of 15 ft on the Boso peninsula. A tsunami occurred in the bay. Waves reached heights of 39 ft in the O-shima area, and 20 ft on the Izu and Boso peninsulas. Sand plows were another side affect of the earthquake. The sand plows happened in the Hojo area and shot up fountains of water. The “fountains” reached a height of 10 feet.

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