I live in an area that will most likely be affected by the nankai earthquake 南海トラフ which is highly likely to occur within the next 30 years. I’m a bit worried some of the buildings look like a breeze can take them down let alone an earthquake
>which is highly likely to occur within the next 30 years
I’m a seismologist. There’s no way to predict large earthquakes. If you’re concerned, live somewhere that was constructed before 2011 and is still structurally sound.
All buildings in Japan are built with a specific earthquake code. You’re worrying too much.
We had our house checked when we bought it, because I think it was part of the earthquake insurance which lasts for 5 years. So either houses get checked every time they change ownership, and/or every time you renew insurance
Short answer – No!
I work in a building that was built in the 70s. Went up to shindo 6 in 2011 and had superficial damage. I’d say you’ve gotta be damn unlucky these days to have a building collapse on you. Luckily, Japan learn from the many previous disasters.
They will condemn buildings that aren’t up to code, friend lived in one that got condemned after the 2011 earthquake.
Yes. Last test was three days ago.
Japan is fine on the quakes and even better if you are in Tokyo or any metropolitan capital. Building regulations are better than every other country in the world for good reason. Your real concern is the tsunami. Quakes didn’t kill people on 3/11. The tsunami killed. Nothing can stop water, not even the thick concrete walls of a nuclear plant.
Japan learned a lot from the Hanshin earthquake from like 27 (?) years ago. That actually messed up a lot of buildings. I lived through it.
I would caution to three things though:
– Nobody knows how destructive Nankai trough will be but its estimated to be BIGGER than 3/11. So record breaking magnitudes are to be expected. As a Japanese person I’m long past worrying about randomly dying to a world ending quake.
– Don’t rely on the government to regulate anything. The Japanese government (and Japanese architects) are very good at keeping building integrity high. But the Japanese government is amazingly good at censoring coverage of wherever the destruction hits the hardest, from any news cycles. 3/11 taught me that. 3/11 took 10% of Japan’s national treasury to do what it could do, but it wasn’t enough. The government was incapable of funding restoration on everything so instead it censored hard. Sendai, aomori, the coasts where the tsunami struck, was only covered for the first 3 days. It was never covered again. I visited sendai a year later for volunteer work in the restoration and it was a wasteland the likes of which I never saw on TV or news sites.
– If you really want to maximize your chances of living through a quake here then stay at least 5km away from coasts and don’t buy a home near mountainsides. I really don’t understand the grit of elderly who want to keep living in their homes in such places where you are 100% likely to lose your home and maybe die, but people still persist.
No
Yes. They go around every year and shake each building and see if it can handle an earthquake.
There are supposed to be laws.
But realistically, from time to time there is always a scandal where something that could have been avoided was not avoided and all that happens is a government investigation that leads to an official somewhere apologizing.
When that earthquake happened in Turkey earlier this year I paid attention, buildings there were supposed to be safe and built to new earthquake resistance standards but…
>Two major earthquakes – measuring 7.8 and 7.5 on the magnitude scale – flattened buildings of all kinds and killed thousands of people across southern Turkey and northern Syria. > >But the fact that even some of the newest apartment blocks crumbled to dust has led to urgent questions about building safety standards. > >Modern construction techniques should mean buildings can withstand quakes of this magnitude. And regulations following previous disasters in the country were supposed to ensure these protections were built in.
So when someone tells you everything is okay just remember that’s true, provided everyone is doing what they ought to do but even someone working as a seismologist can’t know if that is the case.
Japanese building code is very strict. They have inspectors that measure the angle of anchors put into the brackets at the end of each vertical stud.
I was on a construction site where the whole project got shut down because the contractor forgot to take pictures of the rebar before pouring the concrete foundation.
They had to destroy the entire thing and start over.
Don’t live in those rickety buildings then.
Also you worry way too much. Live in a recently built building, have a go-bag and know your exits and have a plan. Refresh your pack and yourself on this yearly, then live an otherwise normal life.
14 comments
No, but new buildings need to meet earthquake resistance requirements
As in send people out to recheck buildings after they’re already passed inspection? No. Unless there’s [some sort of scandal](https://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2006/02/12/commentary/building-scandals-expose-societys-uncaring-foundation/).
Do they offer subsidies for older buildings to do seismic retrofitting? [Apparently they do](https://japanpropertycentral.com/2023/01/9-5-trillion-yen-to-retrofit-tokyos-wooden-homes/). I did not know that.
>which is highly likely to occur within the next 30 years
I’m a seismologist. There’s no way to predict large earthquakes. If you’re concerned, live somewhere that was constructed before 2011 and is still structurally sound.
All buildings in Japan are built with a specific earthquake code. You’re worrying too much.
We had our house checked when we bought it, because I think it was part of the earthquake insurance which lasts for 5 years. So either houses get checked every time they change ownership, and/or every time you renew insurance
Short answer – No!
I work in a building that was built in the 70s. Went up to shindo 6 in 2011 and had superficial damage.
I’d say you’ve gotta be damn unlucky these days to have a building collapse on you. Luckily, Japan learn from the many previous disasters.
They will condemn buildings that aren’t up to code, friend lived in one that got condemned after the 2011 earthquake.
Yes. Last test was three days ago.
Japan is fine on the quakes and even better if you are in Tokyo or any metropolitan capital. Building regulations are better than every other country in the world for good reason. Your real concern is the tsunami. Quakes didn’t kill people on 3/11. The tsunami killed. Nothing can stop water, not even the thick concrete walls of a nuclear plant.
Japan learned a lot from the Hanshin earthquake from like 27 (?) years ago. That actually messed up a lot of buildings. I lived through it.
I would caution to three things though:
– Nobody knows how destructive Nankai trough will be but its estimated to be BIGGER than 3/11. So record breaking magnitudes are to be expected. As a Japanese person I’m long past worrying about randomly dying to a world ending quake.
– Don’t rely on the government to regulate anything. The Japanese government (and Japanese architects) are very good at keeping building integrity high. But the Japanese government is amazingly good at censoring coverage of wherever the destruction hits the hardest, from any news cycles. 3/11 taught me that. 3/11 took 10% of Japan’s national treasury to do what it could do, but it wasn’t enough. The government was incapable of funding restoration on everything so instead it censored hard. Sendai, aomori, the coasts where the tsunami struck, was only covered for the first 3 days. It was never covered again. I visited sendai a year later for volunteer work in the restoration and it was a wasteland the likes of which I never saw on TV or news sites.
– If you really want to maximize your chances of living through a quake here then stay at least 5km away from coasts and don’t buy a home near mountainsides. I really don’t understand the grit of elderly who want to keep living in their homes in such places where you are 100% likely to lose your home and maybe die, but people still persist.
No
Yes. They go around every year and shake each building and see if it can handle an earthquake.
There are supposed to be laws.
But realistically, from time to time there is always a scandal where something that could have been avoided was not avoided and all that happens is a government investigation that leads to an official somewhere apologizing.
When that earthquake happened in Turkey earlier this year I paid attention, buildings there were supposed to be safe and built to new earthquake resistance standards but…
>Two major earthquakes – measuring 7.8 and 7.5 on the magnitude scale – flattened buildings of all kinds and killed thousands of people across southern Turkey and northern Syria.
>
>But the fact that even some of the newest apartment blocks crumbled to dust has led to urgent questions about building safety standards.
>
>Modern construction techniques should mean buildings can withstand quakes of this magnitude. And regulations following previous disasters in the country were supposed to ensure these protections were built in.
[https://www.bbc.com/news/64568826](https://www.bbc.com/news/64568826)
Also, here is a fun article if you think such a thing can’t happen in Japan:
[Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant operator ‘ignored tsunami warning’](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/nov/29/fukushima-daiichi-operator-tsunami-warning)
So when someone tells you everything is okay just remember that’s true, provided everyone is doing what they ought to do but even someone working as a seismologist can’t know if that is the case.
Japanese building code is very strict. They have inspectors that measure the angle of anchors put into the brackets at the end of each vertical stud.
I was on a construction site where the whole project got shut down because the contractor forgot to take pictures of the rebar before pouring the concrete foundation.
They had to destroy the entire thing and start over.
Don’t live in those rickety buildings then.
Also you worry way too much. Live in a recently built building, have a go-bag and know your exits and have a plan. Refresh your pack and yourself on this yearly, then live an otherwise normal life.