Japan's Most Dangerous Hazard
The main natural hazards that I would say is the most dangerous in Japan are Earthquakes. The reason why Japan gets hit by so many Earthquakes is due to their unfortunate location. Japan is very unfortunate since they are in the middle of 4 different plate boundaries. They are surrounded by the Phillipine Plate, Eurasion Plate, North American Plate, and the Pacific Plate. Japan is also unfortunate because they are near a convergent boundary. An it doesn't end there because they are located on what's called the "Pacific Ring of Fire," which is considered the most active earthquake belt in the world and is the main reason why Japan gets hit by strong Earthquakes.
The reason why I'm addressing Earthquakes as a priority is because it's the most common natural hazard in Japan. They don't get hit by many strong Earthquakes, but it's very common in Japan to get hit by an Earthquake that can be felt. For example, I just Googled “Earthquake in Japan” and learned that an Earthquake with a magnitude of 4.7 occured on May 22nd at 11:12pm and the affected countries were Japan, Phillipines, and Taiwan. An Earthquake with a magnitude of 4.7 is strong enough to be felt, and that’s what the people of Japan are used to living with. It’s a sad reality.
There are many recommendations to address Earthquakes in Japan. Since Japan is the county who has the worry about Earthquakes the most, it makes sense that they are the country that is most prepared for the hazard. Here are some examples on how they prepare for earthquakes:
- Children in school are taught heavily on how to prepare for an earthquake under any scenario with monthly drills at school
- After the Kobe earthquake in 1995, building regulations for residential offices and transport infrastructure were reinforced
- Buildings are made earthquake proof with the aid of deep foundation and massive shock absorbers that dampen seismic energy.
- Television and radio stations switch immediately to official earthquake coverage which informs the public of risks, including tsunamis to enable people to retreat to higher ground or, on the coast, purpose-built tsunami defense bunkers.
- All offices and many private houses in Japan have an earthquake emergency kits, including dry rations, drinking water, basic medical supplies that come in very handy when trapped.
The location in Japan that I would target to help first is Tokyo due to the fact that they get hit by the most Earthquakes in the country and also they are the most populated city in the country/island. So I believe it would be important to target helping the most populated city first especially if they are the ones at risk of danger the most.
To answer the question of where would I construct my house in Japan is tough to answer but I think I would go to Okinawa since I heard they don’t have to worry about Earthquakes too much. However, in Japan you can’t hide from natural hazards since they are affected by almost every hazard known but they are also very tough and prepared for almost anything. Japan has to worry about a lot of hazards but I would still say it’s my #1 country I want to visit before I die. I would love to visit Japan right after I am all done with college; I enjoyed learning about Japan this semester and now I want to learn more about their culture.
References:
http://montessorimuddle.org/2011/03/11/plate-tectonics-and-the-earthquake-in-japan/
https://www.livescience.com/54434-why-so-many-earthquakes-strike-japan.html
https://www.quora.com/How-frequent-do-earthquakes-happen-in-Japan-especially-Tokyo
That is unfortunate it is surrounded by four different plate boundaries. It is a good idea that the school have drills to help teach the student so that they will be better prepared in in case of a situation was to occur. It is an interesting to have learned that Tokyo gets hit with the most earthquakes in the country.
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