Japan, Japan ...

What has happened is unbelievable - never, ever have I seen anything like the devastation caused by the tsunami that followed the huge quake yesterday (Friday 11 March).  No one can be prepared for that.  To see it rolling in, not just one huge 10metre wave, but three in succession, just taking all with it, was something you expect to see only in horror movies.  How many people have lost their lives?  How many who have survived, have lost their livelihoods, families, friends, colleagues?  How will the country recover from this terrifying disaster?  I'm sure in time, the country will recover, it has suffered a very long history of devastating earthquakes and recovered each time.

This disaster, because it happened in our lifetime, is possibly the worst we may ever know, but in 1703 an earthquake and tsunami in Genroku killed well over 100,000 people, and four years later, an earthquake killed 5,000.  In 1854, on December 23 and 24, two quakes of 8.4 killed well over 100,000;  1855 saw over 6,000 killed.  In 1896, a quake of 8.5 caused a tsunami of 82 ft, and 27,000 were killed.  The list goes on; 140,000 people killed in 1923.  Earthquakes continued every few years with hundreds being killed.  It is noticeable after 1995, in spite of huge quakes, the death toll dropped dramatically with very few deaths.  It must have been the new building technology that Japan is now world renowned for.  The quake on Friday that measured 8.9, was 8.000 times more powerful than the quake that hit Christchurch.  I can't imagine that.  The aftershocks alone, have been between 6.8 to 7.1.  Christchurch measured 6.3 - granted, it was fairly shallow, but can you imagine what it would have been like if they'd had the shock that Japan has just had?

Kia kaha, Japan.  Our hearts are with you.