April 19, 2012. Tokyo mega-quake 'would kill over 9,000'

SOURCE:

Altegrity Risk International

More than 9,600 people would die with nearly 150,000 others injured if a mega-quake struck Tokyo, according to a government projection on April 18th that noted that the disaster would also level large part of the capital. The simulation was released by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government as Japan is still rebuilding its coast after a 9.0 magnitude quake struck in 2011; that disaster killed around 19,000 people and triggered the worst nuclear accident in a generation.

The simulation indicates that more than 9,000 would be killed if a 7.3 magnitude quake struck the city. A huge tsunami would strike isolated Pacific Ocean islands several hundred kilometers outside Tokyo, which are considered part of the municipality, but was not likely to cause damage or fatalities in the metropolis itself.

The biggest city in earthquake-prone Japan lies at the intersection of four tectonic plates and there is a 50 percent chance it will be struck by a magnitude-7.0 or higher quake in the next four years, according to the University of Tokyo's Earthquake Research Institute.

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