Posted March 11, 2011 It seems like there are so many major natural disasters at the moment? I mean like this year alone so much seems to be happening, so many lives lost. Couple that with the less dangerous and scary extreme winters the UK and New York have had what the hell is going on?! An earthquake measuring 8.9 on the Richter scale rocked Japan's eastern coast today, unleashing a 13ft tsunami which swept boats, cars, buildings and tons of debris miles inland. Fires triggered by the quake burned out of control up and down the coast, including one at an oil refinery. The initial official death toll was put at 26 but reports were fragmented as the country struggled to deal with the catastrophe. There were also reports of injuries in the capital, Tokyo, hundreds of miles away, where buildings shook violently throughout the main quake and the wave of massive aftershocks that followed. A tsunami warning was issued for dozens of Pacific countries, as far away as Chile. Japan's meteorological agency said that, within two hours, large tsunamis washed ashore into dozens of cities along a 1,300-mile (2,100km) stretch of the country's eastern shore - from the northern island of Hokkaido to central Wakayama prefecture. Prime Minister Naoto Kan said the quake caused "major damage in broad areas" but nuclear power plants in the area were not affected. The government was preparing to send troops to the quake-hit areas to help relief efforts. "This is a rare major quake, and damages could quickly rise by the minute," said Junichi Sawada, an official with Japan's Fire and Disaster Management Agency. News HEADLINES:Huge quake and tsunami hit Japan..... EU prepares Gaddafi quit ultimatum..... Embattled Clegg rallies Lib Dems..... MoD names soldier killed in blast..... Staged car accidents 'on increase'..... Mental health helpline for troops..... Airline giant to create 450 jobs..... Briton facing jail in US over scam..... Sex cult leader faces life sentence..... EuroMillions jackpot hits £68m..... Huge quake and tsunami hit Japan..... EU prepares Gaddafi quit ultimatum..... Embattled Clegg rallies Lib Dems..... MoD names soldier killed in blast..... Staged car accidents 'on increase'..... Mental health helpline for troops..... Airline giant to create 450 jobs..... Briton facing jail in US over scam..... Sex cult leader faces life sentence..... EuroMillions jackpot hits £68m..... A magnitude-8.9 earthquake struck off the north-eastern coast of Japan Japan earthquake terror: Massive shock triggers tsunami warning across Pacific 11 Mar 2011 Tsunami: Alert spreads across Pacific ocean Markets: Earthquake sees Asian shares drop Ads by Google All New Coupe City Car Fuel Your Fun With The All New C30. The Customisable Coupe City Car volvocars.com/C30 Sell Your House Fast We'll Buy Your House in 7 Days. Cash Offers. Free Online Estimate http://www.QuickMoveNow.com Sharp Solar Cells Leading the world with an energy conversion efficiency of 35.8% sharp-solar.com Homes for Sale Hyde Park Knight Frank Sales Specialists Hyde Park's Leading Estate Agent search.knightfrank.com An earthquake measuring 8.9 on the Richter scale rocked Japan's eastern coast today, unleashing a 13ft tsunami which swept boats, cars, buildings and tons of debris miles inland. Fires triggered by the quake burned out of control up and down the coast, including one at an oil refinery. The initial official death toll was put at 26 but reports were fragmented as the country struggled to deal with the catastrophe. There were also reports of injuries in the capital, Tokyo, hundreds of miles away, where buildings shook violently throughout the main quake and the wave of massive aftershocks that followed. A tsunami warning was issued for dozens of Pacific countries, as far away as Chile. Japan's meteorological agency said that, within two hours, large tsunamis washed ashore into dozens of cities along a 1,300-mile (2,100km) stretch of the country's eastern shore - from the northern island of Hokkaido to central Wakayama prefecture. Prime Minister Naoto Kan said the quake caused "major damage in broad areas" but nuclear power plants in the area were not affected. The government was preparing to send troops to the quake-hit areas to help relief efforts. "This is a rare major quake, and damages could quickly rise by the minute," said Junichi Sawada, an official with Japan's Fire and Disaster Management Agency. TV footage showed waves of muddy waters sweeping over farmland near the city of Sendai, carrying buildings, some on fire, inland as cars attempted to drive away. Sendai airport, north of Tokyo, was inundated with cars, trucks, buses and thick mud deposited over its runways. Fires spread through a section of the city, public broadcaster NHK reported. The tsunami also roared over embankments in Sendai city, washing cars, houses and farm equipment inland before reversing directions and carrying them out to sea. Flames shot from some of the houses, probably because of burst gas pipes. Elsewhere, large fishing boats lay upturned on land, some distance from the sea. Officials were trying to assess damage, injuries and deaths but had no immediate details. Police said at least one person was killed in a house collapse in Ibaraki prefecture, just north-east of Tokyo. A large fire erupted at the Cosmo oil refinery in Ichihara city in Chiba prefecture near Tokyo and was burning out of control with 100ft (30m) flames whipping into the sky. NHK showed footage of a large ship being swept away by the tsunami and ramming directly into a breakwater in Kesennuma city in Miyagi prefecture. In various locations along the coast, footage showed massive damage from the tsunami, with cars, boats and even buildings being carried along by waters. Partially submerged vehicles were seen bobbing in the water. The US Geological Survey said the quake was a magnitude 8.9, while Japan's meteorological agency measured it at 8.4. It struck at 2.46pm local time and was followed by 12 powerful aftershocks, seven of them at least 6.3, the size of the quake which struck New Zealand recently. A tsunami warning was extended to a number of Pacific, South East Asian and Latin American nations, including Japan, Russia, Indonesia, New Zealand and Chile. In the Philippines, authorities said they expected a 3ft (1m) high tsunami. The quake struck at a depth of six miles (10km), about 80 miles (125km) off the eastern coast, the agency said. The area is 240 miles (380km) north-east of Tokyo. In downtown Tokyo, large buildings shook violently and workers poured into the street for safety. TV footage showed a large building on fire and bellowing smoke in the Odaiba district of Tokyo. Several nuclear plants along the coast were partially shut down, but there were no reports of any radioactive leakage. In central Tokyo, trains were stopped and passengers walked along the tracks to platforms. NHK said more than 4 million buildings were without power in Tokyo and its suburbs. The ceiling in Kudan Kaikan, a large hall in Tokyo, collapsed, injuring an unknown number of people, NHK said. Osamu Akiya, 46, was working in Tokyo at his office in a trading company when the quake hit. It sent bookshelves and computers crashing to the floor, and cracks appeared in the walls. "I've been through many earthquakes, but I've never felt anything like this," he said. "I don't know if we'll be able to get home tonight." Footage on NHK from its Sendai office showed employees stumbling around and books and papers crashing from desks. It also showed a glass shelter at a bus stop in Tokyo destroyed by the quake and a weeping woman nearby being comforted by another woman. Several quakes had hit the same region in recent days, including a 7.3 magnitude one on Wednesday. Thirty minutes after the main quake, tall buildings were still swaying in Tokyo and mobile phone networks were not working. Japan's Coast Guard has set up a task force and officials are standing by for emergency contingencies, Coast Guard official Yosuke Oi said. "I'm afraid we'll soon find out about damages, since the quake was so strong," he said. In Tokyo, hundreds of people were evacuated from Shinjuku train station, the world's busiest, to a nearby park. Trains were halted. Tokyo's main airport was closed. A large section of the ceiling at the one-year-old airport at Ibaraki, about 50 miles (80km) north-east of Tokyo, fell to the floor with a powerful crash. Dozens of fires were reported in northern prefectures of Fukushima, Sendai, Iwate and Ibaraki. Collapsed homes and landslides were also reported in Miyagi. Japan's worst previous earthquake was in 1923 in Canto, which killed 143,000 people, according to USGS. An earthquake in Kobe city in 1996 killed 5,502 people. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 Dark times indeed. Saw this in the article of the latest Earthquake/Tsunami in Japan: "GREAT KANTO QUAKE" Nearly shat myself. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 When a natural distaster happens in a country where it isn't supposed to happen, then we can talk about the world ending. This? Nope. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 When a natural distaster happens in a country where it isn't supposed to happen, then we can talk about the world ending. This? Nope. why though? it's all linked the moving of tectonic plates around the world effects it all happening in these places it shouldn't be happening? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 Because worldwide media has got better over recent years, incidents such as this are far better documented and reported. And yeah the world is going to end next year. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 Couple that with the less dangerous and scary extreme winters the UK and New York have had what the hell is going on? You mean that one week of snow we had? Anyway, there's probably a reason why natural disasters go through phases of increased activity, and we just happen to be going through a rough period now. why though? it's all linked the moving of tectonic plates around the world effects it all happening in these places it shouldn't be happening? What he's saying that it IS only happening in places it should be doing - Japan is pretty much a massive fault. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 I thought they'd put Takeshi's Castle on BBC News for a moment there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 You mean that one week of snow we had? A week?! It had barely started after a week here. I left to go to Canada 15th December and then we had all the snow that caused problems. Still had snow when I came back in January. Anyway I should point out I don't genuinely think the world is ending just people who do say it is gonna end in 2012 will likely point to such craziness as a sign. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 And yeah the world is going to end next year. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 yes those few days of snow that england and new york got last year (during winter, shockingly) is definately a sign that the world is going to end soon. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 So what if the world is ending? There's no point in freaking out. There's nothing we can do about it. That said, saying that the world is ending is a bit dramatic...it would be more sensible to expect the frequency and strength of disasters to increase. What he's saying that it IS only happening in places it should be doing - Japan is pretty much a massive fault. However, the magnitude of recent disasters trump all the ones in the past. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 However, the magnitude of recent disasters trump all the ones in the past. All of them? There have been much worse ones in the past, these are just far more widely reported, and we happen to be alive for them. What about vesuvius? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 All of them? There have been much worse ones in the past, these are just far more widely reported, and we happen to be alive for them. What about vesuvius? Just wait for the next volcanic eruption... :P I kid, but Vesuvius wasn't actually the worst eruption in history. I suppose maybe disasters in our time seem worse because there are more people killed, and that's only because of population explosion and whatnot. So the ones in the past could have been as bad, but without the sensationalised repoting/death tolls of today. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 However, the magnitude of recent disasters trump all the ones in the past. The dinosaurs would disagree. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 The dinosaurs would disagree. That disaster wasn't natural. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 That disaster wasn't natural. Ah yes. Robotnik made the Ice Age happen with his Blizzard O'Matik 1000 and Final Fantasy characters made the Meteors crash into the Earth. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 And yeah the world is going to end next year. This is the start of it, the continuous riots in the middle east / north african nations. as-well as the recent natural disasters. basically everything is going to continue getting worse... the riots will turn into wars the natural disasters will get bigger, more frequent and hit unexpected areas. 2011 is the start of the end of the world. 2012 is when it will all happen. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 I reckon they should call these guys And, what do you expect. Building a civilization upon plates which are more prone to cause quakes?. I blame the high-speed reliable transportation system they use, probably causes the plates to move unexpectidly. Still, pretty aweful natural disaster though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 Your blood-chillingly terrifying image for the day, folks. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 Ah yes. Robotnik made the Ice Age happen with his Blizzard O'Matik 1000 and Final Fantasy characters made the Meteors crash into the Earth. He means the meteor wasn't due to the earth becoming more turbulent, and the meteor's dust cloud blocked the sun and made it colder I think. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 I'm waiting for his explanation on how this apparently isn't natural. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 Your blood-chillingly terrifying image for the day, folks. In my ignorance my first thought when I heard about the 10 meter high tsunami was: "10 meters ain't that high" Then I saw a video of it.... http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/video/2011/mar/11/japan-earthquake-tsunami-video Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 In my ignorance my first thought when I heard about the 10 meter high tsunami was: "10 meters ain't that high"Then I saw a video of it.... http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/video/2011/mar/11/japan-earthquake-tsunami-video I agree, the pictures and some of that video don't do the scale much justice. If it weren't for the vehicle in the beginning shots I would've thought I was looking at a something resembling a small puddle. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 Natural disasters? Pfffff. These will be a God send when the population grows to breaking point and food riots erupt across the world. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 11, 2011 He means the meteor wasn't due to the earth becoming more turbulent, and the meteor's dust cloud blocked the sun and made it colder I think. No. I meant that giant floating brains from space killed the dinosaurs. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
