Japan issues Megaquake advisory as part of the Nankai Trough Earthquake Extra Information protocol

The Japan Meteorological Agency is calling on people in areas of the Nankai Trough quake’s expected hypocenter to take disaster prevention measures. It says the possibility of a mega earthquake is higher than usual. It is asking people to take prevention measures in accordance with information provided by the central and local governments.

The Nankai Trough earthquake is a massive magnitude 8-class temblor that regularly occurs every 100 to 200 years at the plate boundary between Suruga Bay in Shizuoka Prefecture and the Hyuganada Sea in Kyushu.

The government’s Earthquake Research Committee estimates that there is a probability of 70 to 80 percent that a massive earthquake with a magnitude of 8 to 9 will occur within the next 30 years.

According to a damage estimate announced 10 years ago, a wide area of eastern and western Japan would be struck by strong tremors if a maximum earthquake occurs, and a huge tsunami more than 30 meters high would hit coastal areas.

The latest estimate says about 230,000 people would be killed and about 2.09 million buildings would be damaged by fire or destroyed.

[NHK]