Japan Navigator

September 1 is the day that in 1923 the Great Kanto Earthquake struck, claiming more than 142,000 victims – many due to the terrible firestorms. On top of that, the most destructive typhoon on record, the Isewan Typhoon, hit coastal regions in Central Japan on September 26, 1959, killing over 6,000. On average, three to five typhoons a year hit Japan, usually in September. So, more than enough reason to establish a Disaster Prevention Day in this month, and the date has become today, September 1.

On this day, various drills for disaster preparedness are held all over the country by schools, companies and public organizations. Department stores also set up special sections with earthquake survival products. In bookstores you can find books with maps showing how to find your way home from your central Tokyo office to your house in the far-away subsurbs.

Around this time, the fire brigade also pays visits to offices and schools, to train people in the use of fire extinguishers and have volunteers experience an earthquake in the Earthquake Simulator mounted on a truck. I can assure you, at a magnitude 7 or 8, you will be knocked to the floor by the force of the swaying…

Earthquakes can happen anywhere in Japan, anytime. Of course Tokyo is thought to be in extra danger due to the fact that for the past centuries it has been struck by a large quake at 70-year intervals. That means we are 15 years overtime, now… But the Japanese government is also expecting major quakes in the Tokai area, and south of Wakayama.

How many earthquakes are there in Japan? Quite a lot – roughly 1,500 a year, which is about 4 to 5 a day. Not all of these quakes are large and some can not even be felt, but these figures do mean that 20% of all earthquakes happening around the world are concentrated in Japan.

The most recent disastrous earthquake was the 1995 earthquake in Kobe, which claimed 6,000 victims. Since then we have had one magnitude 6 or 7 earthquake almost every year, including the recent ones in Niigata, Miyagi and Iwate, but also quakes on the southern island of Kyushu. Here is an article about the reasons why.

The safest place to live is probably a relatively recent concrete structure that is not too high. As many people are killed in their homes by heavy furniture, it is also important to at least sleep in a place where no furniture can crush you. And try to secure all heavy furniture to the wall or floor (if allowed, in a rented apartment this is not possible), or put extendable “stoppers” between cupboard and ceiling to prevent it from toppling over. Also keep some emergency supplies, especially bottled water, in your home, and prepare an emergency bag in case you have to leave suddenly.

When you live in the city, typhoons are much less scary then earthquakes, as they tend to do most damage in the countryside, causing landslides and flooding. Still, it is safest to stay at home and many companies and stores close down when a major typhoon is approaching.

The interesting thing is that September has always been a bit of a disaster month. In pre-modern times farmers would count for two-hundred and ten days from the first day of spring (Risshun) – and this “Two-hundred and Tenth Day” (Nihyaku Toka) would always fall somewhere in early September. It is the time that the tiny rice plant flowers bloom and that the almost full-grown rice, standing tall in the fields, is especially vulnerable to typhoons and storms. In some regions of Japan, farmers would conduct special magic rituals to prevent typhoons from damaging the all-important rice plants.