Tokyo has already suffered one of the most devastating earthquakes in modern times. On 1 September 1923, just before midday, the city was hit by what is known as the Great Kanto quake-an event over ten times as powerful as Kobe`s earthquake. Two hundrend thousand people were killed. Since that time, Tokyo has been eerily quiet, so the strain beneath the surface has been building for eighty years. Eventually it is bound to snap. In 1923, Tokyo had a population of about three million. Today it is approaching thirty million. Nobody cares to guess how many people might die, but the potential economic cost has been put as high as $7 trillion.
A Short History of Nearly Everything
page 265
Bill Bryson
1 comment:
So scary! Portland has a very similar fear. I guess we're just sitting around waiting for the "big one" Yikes!
Post a Comment