HTH -- Haiti Earthquake

March 14, 2011. Earthquake death toll reaches 1,597 in Japan, could be as high as 10,000

SOURCE: Altegrity Risk International

The death toll from the 8.9-magnitude earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Japan on March 11th reached 1,597 on March 14th, although the death toll is expected to climb as high as 10,000 people, reports indicated. Areas particularly affected by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami include Iwate, Miyagi, Fukushima, Ibaraki and Chiba prefectures. The tsunami annihilated entire coastal areas and left tens of thousands homeless. Officials found as many as 2,000 bodies on the shores of Miyagi prefecture. Tokyo and much of eastern Japan continued to experience severe aftershocks on March 14th, with officials warning another powerful earthquake is likely in the near future.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan postponed on March 14th planned rolling power cuts, claiming that they could be avoided if households cut down on energy consumption. The government advised people not to go to work or school on March 14th as the transportation system could not cope with such demand. The government deployed over 100,000 soldiers, relief workers, and police to the disaster zone, where damages are estimated in the tens of billions of U.S. dollars. In response to the crisis, the Bank of Japan injected some 15 trillion yen (US$183 billion) into the banking system to stabilize financial markets. The Tokyo Nikkei 225 Index fell by some 6.2% on March 14th, the first day of trading after the earthquake. A number of analysts fear that the earthquake and tsunami may push the Japanese economy back into recession.

Damage from the earthquake and tsunami led to two explosions at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor in Fukushima prefecture, with one explosion at reactor1 on March 11th and another at reactor 3 on March 13th. At least 11 people were injured in the second blast, one seriously. Officials said the reactor core remained intact after the second explosion. Reactor 2 is believed to be in danger of an explosion as officials attempted to douse it with sea water. Japanese officials denied any health risk due to nuclear explosion, although the United States Navy (USN) redeployed one of its carriers away from the area after detecting low-level radiation some 160km (100 miles) offshore. Japanese power officials, however, say that thick containment walls survived the blasts and should contain any significant radiation. For some time after the explosion, however, correspondents for a London-based news agency said they detected radiation equivalent to an X-ray examination outside the facility. A number of analysts believe the risk of a Chernobyl-style meltdown are unlikely as the Japanese reactors are built to a higher standard and are placed under stricter safety measures.

The foreign ministries of the United Kingdom, United States, and France called on their nationals to avoid all travel to Japan in the earthquake's aftermath. The diplomatic missions cited temporary water and food supply shortages as well as power and telecommunication outages as serious problems.

The Australian and Canadian foreign ministries, meanwhile, called on their nationals to avoid all unnecessary travel to Chiba, Fukushima, Aomori, Iwate, Nagamo, Niigata, and Ibaraki prefectures, as well as Tokyo. They also calls on their nationals not to travel to the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plan exclusion zone and Miyagi prefecture.