Location: Kobe, Japan

Why???• Kobe lies on a

destructive margin where the two plates (the Eurasian Plate and the Philippine sea plate) moved towards each other until the Philippine plate moved moved under the Eurasian plate causing friction resulting in the earthquake.

Facts

• Happened on Tuesday 17th January at 5:46 Japan standard time

• Approximately 6,434 people

lost their lives • It caused $102.5 billion in

damages • It recorded 7.2 on the Richter

Scale

• It only lasted for 20 seconds

Primary Effects

200,000 bulidings

collapsed

120 of the 150 quays in

120 of the 150 quays in

the port of Kobe were

the port of Kobe were

destroyed

destroyed

collapse of 1 km of the Hanshin Expressway

Several bullet trains de-railed

Secondary Effects• Many systems

were shut down i.e gas, electric and water

Many blocked

roads delaying

ambulances and

fire engines

230,000 people left

homeless

Shortages of clean water and food

Wild Fire• After the quake a fire

spread through the city due to broken gas pipes and electricity wires

• It destroyed 7500 wooden houses.

• The fire was so great that at one stage the wall of flames was 400 metres plus in height

Response• After the quake there were

approximately 1.2 million volunteers involved in the relief efforts.

• It took about 3 months for everything to be back working i.e water, gas and electricity

• New plans have been made to make buildings more quake and fire proof buildings.

• More seismographs were installed to keep better track on how the earth was moving, so they can be prepared in case it happens again.