Japan ups damage seen from feared quake to $2.3T

Published March 19, 2013

Associated Press

TOKYO –  A government panel has revised sharply upward the estimated damages expected from a quake expected to strike in the Pacific off the coast of central Japan, raising the urgency of disaster preparedness for much of the country's eastern coast.

The Cabinet Office said in a report carried by all major newspapers that the estimate of 220 trillion yen ($2.3 trillion) in damage was based on expectations for a magnitude 9 earthquake striking in the Nankai Trough, which runs from just southwest of Tokyo to the east of the southern island of Kyushu.

A magnitude 9 earthquake struck off the northeastern coast in March 2011, unleashing a massive tsunami that killed nearly 20,000 people.

The Cabinet intends to use the higher damage estimate in drawing up disaster preparedness plans.

View the original article here

Japan ups damage seen from feared quake to $2.3T

Published March 19, 2013

Associated Press

TOKYO –  A government panel has revised sharply upward the estimated damages expected from a quake expected to strike in the Pacific off the coast of central Japan, raising the urgency of disaster preparedness for much of the country's eastern coast.

The Cabinet Office said in a report carried by all major newspapers that the estimate of 220 trillion yen ($2.3 trillion) in damage was based on expectations for a magnitude 9 earthquake striking in the Nankai Trough, which runs from just southwest of Tokyo to the east of the southern island of Kyushu.

A magnitude 9 earthquake struck off the northeastern coast in March 2011, unleashing a massive tsunami that killed nearly 20,000 people.

The Cabinet intends to use the higher damage estimate in drawing up disaster preparedness plans.

View the original article here

Japan ups damage seen from feared quake to $2.3T

Published March 19, 2013

Associated Press

TOKYO –  A government panel has revised sharply upward the estimated damages expected from a quake expected to strike in the Pacific off the coast of central Japan, raising the urgency of disaster preparedness for much of the country's eastern coast.

The Cabinet Office said in a report carried by all major newspapers that the estimate of 220 trillion yen ($2.3 trillion) in damage was based on expectations for a magnitude 9 earthquake striking in the Nankai Trough, which runs from just southwest of Tokyo to the east of the southern island of Kyushu.

A magnitude 9 earthquake struck off the northeastern coast in March 2011, unleashing a massive tsunami that killed nearly 20,000 people.

The Cabinet intends to use the higher damage estimate in drawing up disaster preparedness plans.

View the original article here

Quake hits Papua New Guinea; no damage or tsunami

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea –  A strong magnitude-6.7 earthquake has struck Papua New Guinea but there are no immediate reports of damage and no regional tsunami alert.

Chris McKee, the assistant director of the Geophysical Observatory in Port Moresby, said the earthquake's epicenter was relatively deep and some way offshore so it was unlikely to have caused major problems.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake struck Monday morning about 320 kilometers (198 miles) north of the capital Port Moresby and was centered about 84 kilometers (52 miles) below sea level.

Papua New Guinea is on the "Ring of Fire" — an arc of earthquake and volcanic zones that stretches around the Pacific Rim. It's where most of the world's seismic activity occurs.

View the original article here

Quake hits Papua New Guinea; no damage or tsunami

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea –  A strong magnitude-6.7 earthquake has struck Papua New Guinea but there are no immediate reports of damage and no regional tsunami alert.

Chris McKee, the assistant director of the Geophysical Observatory in Port Moresby, said the earthquake's epicenter was relatively deep and some way offshore so it was unlikely to have caused major problems.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake struck Monday morning about 320 kilometers (198 miles) north of the capital Port Moresby and was centered about 84 kilometers (52 miles) below sea level.

Papua New Guinea is on the "Ring of Fire" — an arc of earthquake and volcanic zones that stretches around the Pacific Rim. It's where most of the world's seismic activity occurs.

View the original article here