Earthquake Shakes Japan and Sends a Tsunami Through the Pacific Region
A huge 8.9 magnitude earthquake hit the north-east of Japan and triggered a Tsunami that sends more devastation across the island.
The wall of water, over 20 foot high, swept away anything in it’s path with such ease that no building was safe and ships were thrown miles inland.
The quake struck at 14:46 local time, about 250 miles north east of Tokyo and the area has since suffered from multiple aftershocks with many also more than magnitude 6.
Multiple fires have broken out and as a country running multiple Nuclear power plants, Japan has been put on high nuclear alert. Smoke was seen coming from one plant not long after the quake struck.
Japan’s previous worst disaster was the 8.3 magnitude quake of 1923 that killed approx. 143,000 people. In today’s more quake proof world it’s not thought that the death toll will reach anywhere near that number but it could still reach thousands.
The Tsunami waves are now travelling throughout the pacific and other countries are bracing themselves for it’s impact on their shores.
On one side there are the populous regions of the Philippines, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand; on the other side there are the shores of Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru and Chile with Samoa and Hawaii in the centre.
Photo: Central Intelligence Agency
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