Japan’s warning for the coming ‘mega-quake’: 300,000 people would lose their lives and billion-dollar debacle

Japanese authorities calculated the number of people who would lose their lives if a hypothetical ‘megathrust earthquake’ were to occur in the Nankai Trough, one of the oceanic trenches with the most seismic activity.

The projected result is outlined in a report conducted by a government task force on earthquakes. It details the impact on municipalities across various prefectures in Japan, as well as the number of people to be evacuated. Nearly 800 municipalities would experience tremors of at least level six and a maximum of level seven, with tsunami waves of at least three meters.

READ ALSO: Supersonic, iconic: The Grumman F-14 Tomcat, the famous ‘Top Gun’ aircraft from the Iraq War

As a result, between nine and twelve million people would need to be evacuated. The economic impact on the state’s finances must also be considered. The most deadly scenario projected by authorities predicted losses reaching 270 trillion yen, equivalent to 1.66 trillion euros.

In any case, Japan has an advanced system aimed at mitigating the impact of natural disasters. These include early warning systems like J-Alert. Launched in February 2007, it aims to inform the public about threats and emergencies such as earthquakes and other hazards.

READ ALSO: Walmart confirms the news everyone awaited: revolutionizes Easter shopping with unexpected benefits

The most recent catastrophic event in Japan occurred in 2011, with the nuclear accident at Fukushima, caused by a magnitude 9 earthquake on the Richter scale that generated a 14-meter-high tsunami. The tsunami struck the northeast coast and damaged the Fukushima nuclear plant. A disaster that inevitably led to a nuclear catastrophe.