The 2011 earthquake off the Pacific coast
of Tōhoku (東北地方太平洋沖地震,
Tōhoku-chihō Taiheiyō Oki Jishin) was a
magnitude 9.0–9.1 (Mw) undersea megathrust
earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred
at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on Friday 11 March
2011, with the epicentre approximately 70
kilometres (43 mi) east of the Oshika Peninsula
of Tōhoku and the hypocenter at an underwater
depth of approximately 29 km (18 mi).
The earthquake is often referred to in Japan
as the Great East Japan Earthquake (東日本大震災,
Higashi nihon daishinsai) and is also known
as the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake, the Great
Sendai Earthquake, the Great Tōhoku Earthquake,
and the 3.11 earthquake.
It was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded
in Japan, and the fourth most powerful earthquake
in the world since modern record-keeping began
in 1900.
The earthquake triggered powerful tsunami
waves that may have reached heights of up
to 40.5 metres (133 ft) in Miyako in Tōhoku's
Iwate Prefecture, and which, in the Sendai
area, traveled up to 10 km (6 mi) inland.The
earthquake moved Honshu (the main island of
Japan) 2.4 m (8 ft) east, shifted the Earth
on its axis by estimates of between 10 cm
(4 in) and 25 cm (10 in), increased earth's
rotational speed by 1.8 µs per day, and generated
infrasound waves detected in perturbations
of the low-orbiting GOCE satellite.
Initially, the earthquake caused sinking of
part of Honshu's Pacific coast by up to roughly
a metre, but after about three years, the
coast rose back and kept on rising to exceed
its original height.The tsunami swept the
Japanese mainland and killed over ten thousand
people, mainly through drowning, though blunt
trauma also caused many deaths. The latest
report from the Japanese National Police Agency
report confirms 15,897 deaths, 6,157 injured,
and 2,533 people missing across twenty prefectures,
and a report from 2015 indicated 228,863 people
were still living away from their home in
either temporary housing or due to permanent
relocation.A report by the National Police
Agency of Japan on 10 September 2018 listed
121,778 buildings as "total collapsed", with
a further 280,926 buildings "half collapsed",
and another 699,180 buildings "partially damaged".
The earthquake and tsunami also caused extensive
and severe structural damage in north-eastern
Japan, including heavy damage to roads and
railways as well as fires in many areas, and
a dam collapse. Japanese Prime Minister Naoto
Kan said, "In the 65 years after the end of
World War II, this is the toughest and the
most difficult crisis for Japan." Around 4.4
million households in northeastern Japan were
left without electricity and 1.5 million without
water.The tsunami caused nuclear accidents,
primarily the level 7 meltdowns at three reactors
in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant
complex, and the associated evacuation zones
affecting hundreds of thousands of residents.
Many electrical generators were taken down,
and at least three nuclear reactors suffered
explosions due to hydrogen gas that had built
up within their outer containment buildings
after cooling system failure resulting from
the loss of electrical power. Residents within
a 20 km (12 mi) radius of the Fukushima Daiichi
Nuclear Power Plant and a 10 km (6.2 mi) radius
of the Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Plant
were evacuated.
Early estimates placed insured losses from
the earthquake alone at US$14.5 to $34.6 billion.
The Bank of Japan offered ¥15 trillion (US$183
billion) to the banking system on 14 March
in an effort to normalize market conditions.
The World Bank's estimated economic cost was
US$235 billion, making it the costliest natural
disaster in history.
== Earthquake ==
The 9.1-magnitude (Mw) undersea megathrust
earthquake occurred on 11 March 2011 at 14:46
JST (05:46 UTC) in the north-western Pacific
Ocean at a relatively shallow depth of 32
km (20 mi), with its epicenter approximately
72 km (45 mi) east of the Oshika Peninsula
of Tōhoku, Japan, lasting approximately six
minutes. The earthquake was initially reported
as 7.9 Mw by the USGS before it was quickly
upgraded to 8.8 Mw, then to 8.9 Mw, and then
finally to 9.0 Mw. On 11 July 2016, the USGS
further upgraded the earthquake to 9.1. Sendai
was the nearest major city to the earthquake,
130 km (81 mi) from the epicenter; the earthquake
occurred 373 km (232 mi) from Tokyo.The main
earthquake was preceded by a number of large
foreshocks, with hundreds of aftershocks reported.
One of the first major foreshocks was a 7.2
Mw event on 9 March, approximately 40 km (25
mi) from the epicenter of 11 March earthquake,
with another three on the same day in excess
of 6.0 Mw. Following the main earthquake on
11 March, a 7.4 Mw aftershock was reported
at 15:08 JST (6:06 UTC), succeeded by a 7.9
Mw at 15:15 JST (6:16 UTC) and a 7.7 Mw at
15:26 JST (6:26 UTC). Over eight hundred aftershocks
of magnitude 4.5 Mw or greater have occurred
since the initial quake, including one on
26 October 2013 (local time) of magnitude
7.1 Mw. Aftershocks follow Omori's law, which
states that the rate of aftershocks declines
with the reciprocal of the time since the
main quake. The aftershocks will thus taper
off in time, but could continue for years.
=== Geology ===
This megathrust earthquake was a recurrence
of the mechanism of the earlier 869 Sanriku
earthquake, which has been estimated as having
a magnitude of at least 8.4 Mw, which also
created a large tsunami that inundated the
Sendai plain. Three tsunami deposits have
been identified within the Holocene sequence
of the plain, all formed within the last 3,000
years, suggesting an 800 to 1,100 year recurrence
interval for large tsunamigenic earthquakes.
In 2001 it was reckoned that there was a high
likelihood of a large tsunami hitting the
Sendai plain as more than 1,100 years had
then elapsed. In 2007, the probability of
an earthquake with a magnitude of Mw 8.1–8.3
was estimated as 99% within the following
30 years.This earthquake occurred where the
Pacific Plate is subducting under the plate
beneath northern Honshu. The Pacific plate,
which moves at a rate of 8 to 9 cm (3.1 to
3.5 in) per year, dips under Honshu's underlying
plate, building large amounts of elastic energy.
This motion pushes the upper plate down until
the accumulated stress causes a seismic slip-rupture
event. The break caused the sea floor to rise
by several metres. A quake of this magnitude
usually has a rupture length of at least 500
km (310 mi) and generally requires a long,
relatively straight fault surface. Because
the plate boundary and subduction zone in
the area of the Honshu rupture is not very
straight, it is unusual for the magnitude
of its earthquake to exceed 8.5 Mw; the magnitude
of this earthquake was a surprise to some
seismologists. The hypocentral region of this
earthquake extended from offshore Iwate Prefecture
to offshore Ibaraki Prefecture. The Japanese
Meteorological Agency said that the earthquake
may have ruptured the fault zone from Iwate
to Ibaraki with a length of 500 km (310 mi)
and a width of 200 km (120 mi). Analysis showed
that this earthquake consisted of a set of
three events. Other major earthquakes with
tsunamis struck the Sanriku Coast region in
1896 and in 1933.
The source area of this earthquake has a relatively
high coupling coefficient surrounded by areas
of relatively low coupling coefficients in
the west, north, and south. From the averaged
coupling coefficient of 0.5–0.8 in the source
area and the seismic moment, it was estimated
that the slip deficit of this earthquake was
accumulated over a period of 260–880 years,
which is consistent with the recurrence interval
of such great earthquakes estimated from the
tsunami deposit data. The seismic moment of
this earthquake accounts for about 93% of
the estimated cumulative moment from 1926
to March 2011. Hence, earthquakes with magnitudes
about 7 since 1926 in this area only had released
part of the accumulated energy. In the area
near the trench, the coupling coefficient
is high, which could act as the source of
the large tsunami.Most of the foreshocks are
interplate earthquakes with thrust-type focal
mechanisms. Both interplate and intraplate
earthquakes appeared in the aftershocks offshore
Sanriku coast with considerable proportions.The
strong ground motion registered at the maximum
of 7 on the Japan Meteorological Agency seismic
intensity scale in Kurihara, Miyagi Prefecture.
Three other prefectures—Fukushima, Ibaraki
and Tochigi—recorded an upper 6 on the JMA
scale. Seismic stations in Iwate, Gunma, Saitama
and Chiba Prefecture measured a lower 6, recording
an upper 5 in Tokyo.
In Russia, the main shock could be felt in
Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (MSK 4) and Kurilsk (MSK
4). The aftershock at 06:25 UTC could be felt
in Yuzhno-Kurilsk (MSK 5) and Kurilsk (MSK
4).
=== Energy ===
The surface energy of the seismic waves from
the earthquake was calculated to be at 1.9×1017
joules, which is nearly double that of the
9.1 Mw 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami
that killed 230,000 people. If harnessed,
the seismic energy from this earthquake would
power a city the size of Los Angeles for an
entire year. The seismic moment (M0), which
represents a physical size for the event,
was calculated by the USGS at 3.9×1022 joules,
slightly less than the 2004 Indian Ocean quake.
Japan's National Research Institute for Earth
Science and Disaster Prevention (NIED) calculated
a peak ground acceleration of 2.99 g (29.33
m/s2). The largest individual recording in
Japan was 2.7 g, in Miyagi Prefecture, 75
km from the epicentre; the highest reading
in the Tokyo metropolitan area was 0.16 g.
=== Geophysical effects ===
Portions of northeastern Japan shifted by
as much as 2.4 metres (7 ft 10 in) closer
to North America, making some sections of
Japan's landmass wider than before. Those
areas of Japan closest to the epicenter experienced
the largest shifts. A 400-kilometre (250 mi)
stretch of coastline dropped vertically by
0.6 metres (2 ft 0 in), allowing the tsunami
to travel farther and faster onto land. One
early estimate suggested that the Pacific
plate may have moved westward by up to 20
metres (66 ft), and another early estimate
put the amount of slippage at as much as 40
m (130 ft). On 6 April the Japanese coast
guard said that the quake shifted the seabed
near the epicenter 24 metres (79 ft) and elevated
the seabed off the coast of Miyagi Prefecture
by 3 metres (9.8 ft). A report by the Japan
Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology,
published in Science on 2 December 2011, concluded
that the seabed in the area between the epicenter
and the Japan Trench moved 50 metres (160
ft) east-southeast and rose about 7 metres
(23 ft) as a result of the quake. The report
also stated that the quake had caused several
major landslides on the seabed in the affected
area.
The Earth's axis shifted by estimates of between
10 cm (4 in) and 25 cm (10 in). This deviation
led to a number of small planetary changes,
including the length of a day, the tilt of
the Earth, and the Chandler wobble. The speed
of the Earth's rotation increased, shortening
the day by 1.8 microseconds due to the redistribution
of Earth's mass. The axial shift was caused
by the redistribution of mass on the Earth's
surface, which changed the planet's moment
of inertia. Because of conservation of angular
momentum, such changes of inertia result in
small changes to the Earth's rate of rotation.
These are expected changes for an earthquake
of this magnitude. The earthquake also generated
infrasound waves detected by perturbations
in the orbit of the GOCE satellite, which
thus serendipitously became the first seismograph
in orbit.Soil liquefaction was evident in
areas of reclaimed land around Tokyo, particularly
in Urayasu, Chiba City, Funabashi, Narashino
(all in Chiba Prefecture) and in the Koto,
Edogawa, Minato, Chūō, and Ōta Wards of
Tokyo. Approximately 30 homes or buildings
were destroyed and 1,046 other buildings were
damaged to varying degrees. Nearby Haneda
Airport, built mostly on reclaimed land, was
not damaged. Odaiba also experienced liquefaction,
but damage was minimal.Shinmoedake, a volcano
in Kyushu, erupted three days after the earthquake.
The volcano had previously erupted in January
2011; it is not known if the later eruption
was linked to the earthquake. In Antarctica,
the seismic waves from the earthquake were
reported to have caused the Whillans Ice Stream
to slip by about 0.5 metres (1 ft 8 in).
The first sign international researchers had
that the earthquake caused such a dramatic
change in the Earth's rotation came from the
United States Geological Survey which monitors
Global Positioning Satellite stations across
the world. The Survey team had several GPS
monitors located near the scene of the earthquake.
The GPS station located nearest the epicenter
moved almost 4 m (13 ft). This motivated government
researchers to look into other ways the earthquake
may have had large scale effects on the planet.
Calculations at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory
determined that the Earth's rotation was changed
by the earthquake to the point where the days
are now 1.8 microseconds shorter.
=== Aftershocks ===
Japan experienced over 1,000 aftershocks since
the earthquake, with 80 registering over magnitude
6.0 Mw and several of which have been over
magnitude 7.0 Mw.
A magnitude 7.4 Mw at 15:08 (JST), 7.9 Mw
at 15:15 and a 7.7 Mw quake at 15:26 all occurred
on 11 March.A month later, a major aftershock
struck offshore on 7 April with a magnitude
of 7.1 Mw. Its epicenter was underwater, 66
km (41 mi) off the coast of Sendai. The Japan
Meteorological Agency assigned a magnitude
of 7.4 MJMA, while the U.S. Geological Survey
lowered it to 7.1 Mw. At least four people
were killed, and electricity was cut off across
much of northern Japan including the loss
of external power to Higashidōri Nuclear
Power Plant and Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant.Four
days later on 11 April, another magnitude
7.1 Mw aftershock struck Fukushima, causing
additional damage and killing a total of three
people.On 7 December 2012 a large aftershock
of magnitude 7.3 Mw caused a minor tsunami,
and again on 26 October 2013 small tsunami
waves were recorded after a 7.1 Mw aftershock.As
of 16 March 2012 aftershocks continued, totaling
1887 events over magnitude 4.0; a regularly
updated map showing all shocks of magnitude
4.5 and above near or off the east coast of
Honshu in the last seven days showed over
20 events.As of 11 March 2016 there had been
869 aftershocks of 5.0 Mw or greater, 118
of 6.0 Mw or greater, and 9 over 7.0 Mw as
reported by the Japanese Meteorological Agency.The
number of aftershocks was associated with
decreased health across Japan.
=== Earthquake Warning System ===
One minute before the earthquake was felt
in Tokyo, the Earthquake Early Warning system,
which includes more than 1,000 seismometers
in Japan, sent out warnings of impending strong
shaking to millions. It is believed that the
early warning by the Japan Meteorological
Agency (JMA) saved many lives. The warning
for the general public was delivered about
8 seconds after the first P wave was detected,
or about 31 seconds after the earthquake occurred.
However, the estimated intensities were smaller
than the actual ones in some places, especially
in Kanto, Koshinetsu, and Northern Tōhoku
regions where the populace warning did not
trigger. According to the JMA Meteorological
Research Institute, reasons for the underestimation
include a saturated magnitude scale when using
maximum amplitude as input, failure to fully
take into account the area of the hypocenter,
and the initial amplitude of the earthquake
being less than that which would be predicted
by an empirical relationship.There were also
cases where large differences between estimated
intensities by the Earthquake Early Warning
system and the actual intensities occurred
in the aftershocks and triggered earthquakes.
Such discrepancies in the warning were attributed
by the JMA to the system's inability to distinguish
between two different earthquakes that happened
at around same time, as well as to the reduced
number of reporting seismometers due to power
outages and connection fails. The system's
software was subsequently modified to handle
this kind of situation.
== Tsunami ==
An upthrust of 6 to 8 metres (20 to 26 ft)
along a 180 kilometres (110 mi) wide seabed
at 60 kilometres (37 mi) offshore from the
east coast of Tōhoku resulted in a major
tsunami that brought destruction along the
Pacific coastline of Japan's northern islands.
Thousands of lives were lost and entire towns
were devastated. The tsunami propagated throughout
the Pacific Ocean region reaching the entire
Pacific coast of North and South America from
Alaska to Chile. Warnings were issued and
evacuations were carried out in many countries
bordering the Pacific. Although the tsunami
affected many of these places, the heights
of the waves were minor. Chile's Pacific coast,
one of the furthest from Japan at about 17,000
kilometres (11,000 mi) away, was struck by
waves 2 metres (6.6 ft) high, compared with
an estimated wave height of 38.9 metres (128
ft) at Omoe peninsula, Miyako city, Japan.
=== Japan ===
The tsunami warning issued by the Japan Meteorological
Agency was the most serious on its warning
scale; it was rated as a "major tsunami",
being at least 3 metres (9.8 ft) high. The
actual height prediction varied, the greatest
being for Miyagi at 6 metres (20 ft) high.
The tsunami inundated a total area of approximately
561 square kilometres (217 sq mi) in Japan.
The earthquake took place at 14:46 JST (UTC
05:46) around 67 kilometres (42 mi) from the
nearest point on Japan's coastline, and initial
estimates indicated the tsunami would have
taken 10 to 30 minutes to reach the areas
first affected, and then areas farther north
and south based on the geography of the coastline.
Just over an hour after the earthquake at
15:55 JST, a tsunami was observed flooding
Sendai Airport, which is located near the
coast of Miyagi Prefecture, with waves sweeping
away cars and planes and flooding various
buildings as they traveled inland. The impact
of the tsunami in and around Sendai Airport
was filmed by an NHK News helicopter, showing
a number of vehicles on local roads trying
to escape the approaching wave and being engulfed
by it. A 4-metre-high (13 ft) tsunami hit
Iwate Prefecture. Wakabayashi Ward in Sendai
was also particularly hard hit. At least 101
designated tsunami evacuation sites were hit
by the wave.
Like the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and
tsunami, the damage by surging water, though
much more localized, was far more deadly and
destructive than the actual quake. Entire
towns were destroyed in tsunami-hit areas
in Japan, including 9,500 missing in Minamisanriku;
one thousand bodies had been recovered in
the town by 14 March 2011.Among several factors
causing the high death toll from the tsunami,
one was the unexpectedly large size of the
water surge. The tsunami walls in several
of the affected cities had been constructed
to protect against tsunamis of much lower
heights. Also, many people who were caught
in the tsunami thought that they were located
on high enough ground to be safe. According
to the conclusions of a special committee
on disaster prevention, which had been designated
by the Japanese government, the tsunami protection
policy had been intended to deal with only
those tsunamis that had been scientifically
proved to occur repeatedly; the committee
therefore advised that in the future the policy
should be changed to protect against the highest
possible tsunami. Because tsunami walls had
been overtopped by this tsunami, the committee
also suggested that, besides constructing
tsunami walls to a height that can protect
against relatively frequent tsunamis, it is
still necessary to teach citizens who are
protected by tsunami walls how to evacuate
if a largest scale tsunami should strike those
places.
Large parts of Kuji and the southern section
of Ōfunato including the port area were almost
entirely destroyed. Also largely destroyed
was Rikuzentakata, where the tsunami was three
stories high. Other cities destroyed or heavily
damaged by the tsunami include Kamaishi, Miyako,
Ōtsuchi, and Yamada (in Iwate Prefecture),
Namie, Sōma, and Minamisōma (in Fukushima
Prefecture) and Shichigahama, Higashimatsushima,
Onagawa, Natori, Ishinomaki, and Kesennuma
(in Miyagi Prefecture). The most severe effects
of the tsunami were felt along a 670-kilometre-long
(420 mi) stretch of coastline from Erimo,
Hokkaido, in the north to Ōarai, Ibaraki,
in the south, with most of the destruction
in that area occurring in the hour following
the earthquake. Near Ōarai, people captured
images of a huge whirlpool that had been generated
by the tsunami. The tsunami washed away the
sole bridge to Miyatojima, Miyagi, isolating
the island's 900 residents. A 2 metres (6
ft 7 in) high tsunami hit Chiba Prefecture
about 2½ hours after the quake, causing heavy
damage to cities such as Asahi.On 13 March
2011, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA)
published details of tsunami observations
recorded around the coastline of Japan following
the earthquake. These observations included
tsunami maximum readings of over 3 metres
(9.8 ft) at the following locations and times
on 11 March 2011, following the earthquake
at 14:46 JST:
15:12 JST – off Kamaishi – 6.8 metres
(22 ft)
15:15 JST – Ōfunato – 3.2 metres (10
ft) or higher
15:20 JST – Ishinomaki-shi Ayukawa – 3.3
metres (11 ft) or higher
15:21 JST – Miyako – 4 metres (13 ft)
or higher
15:21 JST – Kamaishi – 4.1 metres (13
ft) or higher
15:44 JST – Erimo-cho Shoya – 3.5 metres
(11 ft)
15:50 JST – Sōma – 7.3 metres (24 ft)
or higher
16:52 JST – Ōarai – 4.2 metres (14 ft)Many
areas were also affected by waves of 1 to
3 metres (3 ft 3 in to 9 ft 10 in) in height,
and the JMA bulletin also included the caveat
that "At some parts of the coasts, tsunamis
may be higher than those observed at the observation
sites." The timing of the earliest recorded
tsunami maximum readings ranged from 15:12
to 15:21, between 26 and 35 minutes after
the earthquake had struck. The bulletin also
included initial tsunami observation details,
as well as more detailed maps for the coastlines
affected by the tsunami waves.JMA also reported
offshore tsunami height recorded by telemetry
from moored GPS wave-height meter buoys as
follows:
offshore of central Iwate (Miyako) – 6.3
metres (21 ft)
offshore of northern Iwate (Kuji) – 6 metres
(20 ft)
offshore of northern Miyagi (Kesennuma) – 6
metres (20 ft)On 25 March 2011, Port and Airport
Research Institute (PARI) reported tsunami
height by visiting the port sites as follows:
Port of Hachinohe – 5–6 metres (16–20
ft)
Port of Hachinohe area – 8–9 metres (26–30
ft)
Port of Kuji – 8–9 metres (26–30 ft)
Port of Kamaishi – 7–9 metres (23–30
ft)
Port of Ōfunato – 9.5 metres (31 ft)
Run up height, port of Ōfunato area – 24
metres (79 ft)
Fishery port of Onagawa – 15 metres (49
ft)
Port of Ishinomaki – 5 metres (16 ft)
Shiogama section of Shiogama-Sendai port – 4
metres (13 ft)
Sendai section of Shiogama-Sendai port – 8
metres (26 ft)
Sendai Airport area – 12 metres (39 ft)The
tsunami at Ryōri Bay (綾里湾), Ōfunato
reached a height of 40.1 metres (132 ft) (run-up
elevation). Fishing equipment was scattered
on the high cliff above the bay. At Tarō,
Iwate, the tsunami reached a height of 37.9
metres (124 ft) up the slope of a mountain
some 200 metres (660 ft) away from the coastline.
Also, at the slope of a nearby mountain from
400 metres (1,300 ft) away at Aneyoshi fishery
port (姉吉漁港) of Omoe peninsula (重茂半島)
in Miyako, Iwate, Tokyo University of Marine
Science and Technology found estimated tsunami
run up height of 38.9 metres (128 ft). This
height is deemed the record in Japan historically,
as of reporting date, that exceeds 38.2 metres
(125 ft) from the 1896 Meiji-Sanriku earthquake.
It was also estimated that the tsunami reached
heights of up to 40.5 metres (133 ft) in Miyako
in Tōhoku's Iwate Prefecture. The inundated
areas closely matched those of the 869 Sanriku
tsunami.A Japanese government study found
that 58% of people in coastal areas in Iwate,
Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures heeded tsunami
warnings immediately after the quake and headed
for higher ground. Of those who attempted
to evacuate after hearing the warning, only
five percent were caught in the tsunami. Of
those who didn't heed the warning, 49% were
hit by the water.Delayed evacuations in response
to the warnings had a number of causes. The
tsunami height that had been initially predicted
by the tsunami warning system was lower than
the actual tsunami height; this error contributed
to the delayed escape of some residents. The
discrepancy arose as follows: In order to
produce a quick prediction of a tsunami's
height and thus to provide a timely warning,
the initial earthquake and tsunami warning
that was issued for the event was based on
a calculation that requires only about 3 minutes.
This calculation is, in turn, based on the
maximum amplitude of the seismic wave. The
amplitude of the seismic wave is measured
using the JMA magnitude scale, which is similar
to Richter magnitude scale. However, these
scales "saturate" for earthquakes that are
above a certain magnitude (magnitude 8 on
the JMA scale); that is, in the case of very
large earthquakes, the scales' values change
little despite large differences in the earthquakes'
energy. This resulted in an underestimation
of the tsunami's height in initial reports.
Problems in issuing updates also contributed
to delays in evacuations. The warning system
was supposed to be updated about 15 minutes
after the earthquake occurred, by which time
the calculation for the moment magnitude scale
would normally be completed. However, the
strong quake had exceeded the measurement
limit of all of the teleseismometers within
Japan, and thus it was impossible to calculate
the moment magnitude based on data from those
seismometers. Another cause of delayed evacuations
was the release of the second update on the
tsunami warning long after the earthquake
(28 minutes, according to observations); by
that time, power failures and similar circumstances
reportedly prevented the update from reaching
some residents. Also, observed data from tidal
meters that were located off the coast were
not fully reflected in the second warning.
Furthermore, shortly after the earthquake,
some wave meters reported a fluctuation of
"20 centimetres (7.9 in)", and this value
was broadcast throughout the mass media and
the warning system, which caused some residents
to underestimate the danger of their situation
and even delayed or suspended their evacuation.In
response to the aforementioned shortcomings
in the tsunami warning system, JMA began an
investigation in 2011 and updated their system
in 2013. In the updated system, for a powerful
earthquake that is capable of causing the
JMA magnitude scale to saturate, no quantitative
prediction will be released in the initial
warning; instead, there will be words that
describe the situation's emergency. There
are plans to install new teleseismometers
with the ability to measure larger earthquakes,
which would allow the calculation of a quake's
moment magnitude scale in a timely manner.
JMA also implemented a simpler empirical method
to integrate, into a tsunami warning, data
from GPS tidal meters as well as from undersea
water pressure meters, and there are plans
to install more of these meters and to develop
further technology to utilize data observed
by them. To prevent under-reporting of tsunami
heights, early quantitative observation data
that are smaller than the expected amplitude
will be overridden and the public will instead
be told that the situation is under observation.
About 90 seconds after an earthquake, an additional
report on the possibility of a tsunami will
also be included in observation reports, in
order to warn people before the JMA magnitude
can be calculated.
=== Elsewhere across the Pacific ===
Shortly after the earthquake, the Pacific
Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) in Hawaii issued
tsunami watches and announcements for locations
in the Pacific. At 07:30 UTC, PTWC issued
a widespread tsunami warning covering the
entire Pacific Ocean. Russia evacuated 11,000
residents from coastal areas of the Kuril
Islands. The United States National Tsunami
Warning Center issued a tsunami warning for
the coastal areas in most of California, all
of Oregon, and the western part of Alaska,
and a tsunami advisory covering the Pacific
coastlines of most of Alaska, and all of Washington
and British Columbia, Canada. In California
and Oregon, up to 2.4-metre-high (7.9 ft)
tsunami surges hit some areas, damaging docks
and harbors and causing over US$10 million
in damage. In Curry County, Oregon $7 million
in damage occurred including the destruction
of 1,100 metres (3,600 ft) of docks at the
Brookings harbor; the county has received
over $1 million in FEMA emergency grants.
Surges of up to 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) hit Vancouver
Island in Canada prompting some evacuations,
and causing boats to be banned from the waters
surrounding the island for 12 hours following
the wave strike, leaving many island residents
in the area without means of getting to work.
In the Philippines, waves up to 0.5 metres
(1 ft 8 in) high hit the eastern seaboard
of the country. Some houses along the coast
in Jayapura, Indonesia were destroyed. Authorities
in Wewak, East Sepik, Papua New Guinea evacuated
100 patients from the city's Boram Hospital
before it was hit by the waves, causing an
estimated US$4 million in damage. Hawaii estimated
damage to public infrastructure alone at US$3
million, with damage to private properties,
including resort hotels such as Four Seasons
Resort Hualalai, estimated at tens of millions
of dollars. It was reported that a 1.5-metre-high
(4.9 ft) wave completely submerged Midway
Atoll's reef inlets and Spit Island, killing
more than 110,000 nesting seabirds at the
Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. Some
other South Pacific countries, including Tonga
and New Zealand, and U.S. territories American
Samoa and Guam, experienced larger-than-normal
waves, but did not report any major damage.
However, in Guam some roads were closed off
and people were evacuated from low-lying areas.
Along the Pacific Coast of Mexico and South
America, tsunami surges were reported, but
in most places caused little or no damage.
Peru reported a wave of 1.5 metres (4 ft 11
in) and more than 300 homes damaged. The surge
in Chile was large enough to damage more than
200 houses, with waves of up to 3 metres (9.8
ft). In the Galápagos Islands, 260 families
received assistance following a 3 metres (9.8
ft) surge which arrived 20 hours after the
earthquake, after the tsunami warning had
been lifted. There was a great deal of damage
to buildings on the islands and one man was
injured but there were no reported fatalities.After
a 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) high surge hit Chile,
it was reported that the reflection from those
surges traveled back across the Pacific, causing
30–60 centimetres (12–24 in) surge in
Japan, 47–48 hours after the earthquake,
according to observation from multiple tide
station, including in Onahama, Owase, and
Kushimoto.The tsunami broke icebergs off the
Sulzberger Ice Shelf in Antarctica, 13,000
kilometres (8,100 mi) away. The main iceberg
measured 9.5 by 6.5 kilometres (5.9 mi × 4.0
mi) (approximately the area of Manhattan Island)
and about 80 metres (260 ft) thick. A total
of 125 square kilometres (48 sq mi; 31,000
acres) of ice broke away.As of April 2012,
wreckage from the tsunami spread around the
world, including a soccer ball which was found
in Alaska's Middleton Island and a Japanese
motorcycle found in British Columbia, Canada.
== Land subsidence ==
The Geospatial Information Authority of Japan
reported land subsidence based on the height
of triangulation stations in the area measured
by GPS as compared to their previous values
from 14 April 2011.
Miyako, Iwate – 0.50 metres (1 ft 8 in)
Yamada, Iwate – 0.53 metres (1 ft 9 in)
Ōtsuchi, Iwate – 0.35 metres (1 ft 2 in)
Kamaishi, Iwate – 0.66 metres (2 ft 2 in)
Ōfunato, Iwate – 0.73 metres (2 ft 5 in)
Rikuzentakata, Iwate – 0.84 metres (2 ft
9 in)
Kesennuma, Miyagi – 0.74 metres (2 ft 5
in)
Minamisanriku, Miyagi – 0.69 metres (2 ft
3 in)
Oshika Peninsula, Miyagi – 1.2 metres (3
ft 11 in)
Ishinomaki, Miyagi – 0.78 metres (2 ft 7
in)
Higashimatsushima, Miyagi – 0.43 metres
(1 ft 5 in)
Iwanuma, Miyagi – 0.47 metres (1 ft 7 in)
Sōma, Fukushima – 0.29 metres (11 in)Scientists
say that the subsidence is permanent. As a
result, the communities in question are now
more susceptible to flooding during high tides.
== Casualties ==
=== 
Japan ===
In Japan, the National Police Agency has confirmed
15,897 deaths, 6,157 injured, and 2,533 people
missing across twenty prefectures. In addition,
some three thousands extra deaths have been
identified as "earthquake-related deaths",
bringing the total number of deaths caused
by the disaster to 19,575 as of 2017 September.Of
the 13,135 fatalities recovered by 11 April
2011, 12,143 or 92.5% died by drowning. Victims
aged 60 or older accounted for 65.2% of the
deaths, with 24% of total victims being in
their 70s. As of March 2012, Japanese police
data showed that 70% of the 3,279 still missing
were aged 60 or over, all found, including
893 in their 70s and 577 in their 80s. Of
the total confirmed victims, 14,308 drowned,
667 were crushed to death or died from internal
injuries, and 145 perished from burns.
"Earthquake-related death" is defined as cases
where the earthquake did not directly kill
those people, however it act as a contributory
factor that indirectly caused their death,
for the purpose of relief fund distribution.
Some of the most widely reported reason for
these deaths include "Physical and mental
fatigue caused by life in temporary shelter",
"Physical and mental fatigue caused by evacuation",
"Delayed treatment due to the inoperative
of hospital", "Physical and mental fatigue
caused by stress from the earthquake and tsunami".
A few cases of suicide are also included.
Most of these deaths occurred during the first
six months after the earthquake and the number
dropped thereafter, but as time has passed,
the number has continued to increase. Most
of these deaths occurred in Fukushima prefecture,
where the prefecture government has suggested
that they could be due to evacuations caused
by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.
These indirect casualties have already resulted
in more deaths than the number of people killed
directly by earthquake and tsunami within
the Fukushima prefecture.Save the Children
reports that as many as 100,000 children were
uprooted from their homes, some of whom were
separated from their families because the
earthquake occurred during the school day.
236 children were orphaned in the prefectures
of Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima by the disaster;
1,580 children lost either one or both parents,
846 in Miyagi, 572 in Iwate, and 162 in Fukushima.
The quake and tsunami killed 378 elementary,
middle-school, and high school students and
left 158 others missing. One elementary school
in Ishinomaki, Miyagi, Okawa Elementary, lost
74 of 108 students and 10 of 13 teachers and
staff.The Japanese Foreign Ministry has confirmed
the deaths of nineteen foreigners. Among them
are two English teachers from the United States
affiliated with the Japan Exchange and Teaching
Program; a Canadian missionary in Shiogama;
and citizens of China, North and South Korea,
Taiwan, Pakistan and the Philippines.
By 9:30 UTC on 11 March, Google Person Finder,
which was previously used in the Haitian,
Chilean, and Christchurch, New Zealand earthquakes,
was collecting information about survivors
and their locations.Japanese funerals are
normally elaborate Buddhist ceremonies that
entail cremation. The thousands of bodies,
however, exceeded the capacity of available
crematoriums and morgues, many of them damaged,
and there were shortages of both kerosene—each
cremation requires 50 litres—and dry ice
for preservation. The single crematorium in
Higashimatsushima, for example, could only
handle four bodies a day, although hundreds
were found there. Governments and the military
were forced to bury many bodies in hastily
dug mass graves with rudimentary or no rites,
although relatives of the deceased were promised
that they would be cremated later.Noted individual
fatalities within Japan included 104-year-old
Takashi Shimokawara, holder of the world athletics
records in the men's shot put, discus throw
and javelin throw for the over-100s age category.
He was killed by the earthquake and tsunami
at Kamaishi, Iwate.As of 27 May 2011, three
Japan Ground Self-Defense Force members had
died while conducting relief operations in
Tōhoku. As of March 2012, the Japanese government
had recognized 1,331 deaths as indirectly
related to the earthquake, such as caused
by harsh living conditions after the disaster.
As of 30 April 2012, 18 people had died and
420 had been injured while participating in
disaster recovery or clean-up efforts.
=== Overseas ===
The tsunami is reported to have caused several
deaths outside Japan. One man was killed in
Jayapura, Papua, Indonesia after being swept
out to sea. A man who is said to have been
attempting to photograph the oncoming tsunami
at the mouth of the Klamath River, south of
Crescent City, California, was swept out to
sea. His body was found on 2 April along Ocean
Beach in Fort Stevens State Park, Oregon,
330 miles (530 km) to the north.
== Damage and effects ==
The degree and extent of damage caused by
the earthquake and resulting tsunami were
enormous, with most of the damage being caused
by the tsunami. Video footage of the towns
that were worst affected shows little more
than piles of rubble, with almost no parts
of any structures left standing. Estimates
of the cost of the damage range well into
the tens of billions of US dollars; before-and-after
satellite photographs of devastated regions
show immense damage to many regions. Although
Japan has invested the equivalent of billions
of dollars on anti-tsunami seawalls which
line at least 40% of its 34,751 km (21,593
mi) coastline and stand up to 12 m (39 ft)
high, the tsunami simply washed over the top
of some seawalls, collapsing some in the process.
Japan's National Police Agency said on 3 April
2011, that 45,700 buildings were destroyed
and 144,300 were damaged by the quake and
tsunami. The damaged buildings included 29,500
structures in Miyagi Prefecture, 12,500 in
Iwate Prefecture and 2,400 in Fukushima Prefecture.
Three hundred hospitals with 20 beds or more
in Tōhoku were damaged by the disaster, with
11 being completely destroyed. The earthquake
and tsunami created an estimated 24–25 million
tons of rubble and debris in Japan.An estimated
230,000 automobiles and trucks were damaged
or destroyed in the disaster. As of the end
of May 2011, residents of Iwate, Miyagi, and
Fukushima prefectures had requested deregistration
of 15,000 vehicles, meaning that the owners
of those vehicles were writing them off as
unrepairable or unsalvageable.
=== Ports ===
All of Japan's ports were briefly shut down
after the earthquake, though the ones in Tokyo
and southwards soon re-opened. Fifteen ports
were located in the disaster zone. The north
eastern ports of Hachinohe, Sendai, Ishinomaki
and Onahama were destroyed, while the Port
of Chiba (which serves the hydrocarbon industry)
and Japan's ninth-largest container port at
Kashima were also affected, though less severely.
The ports at Hitachinaka, Hitachi, Soma, Shiogama,
Kesennuma, Ofunato, Kamashi and Miyako were
also damaged and closed to ships. All 15 ports
reopened to limited ship traffic by 29 March
2011. A total of 319 fishing ports, about
10% of Japan's fishing ports, were damaged
in the disaster. Most were restored to operating
condition by 18 April 2012.The Port of Tokyo
suffered slight damage; the effects of the
quake included visible smoke rising from a
building in the port with parts of the port
areas being flooded, including soil liquefaction
in Tokyo Disneyland's parking lot.
=== Dams and water problems ===
The Fujinuma irrigation dam in Sukagawa ruptured,
causing flooding and the washing away of five
homes. Eight people were missing and four
bodies were discovered by the morning. Reportedly,
some locals had attempted to repair leaks
in the dam before it completely failed. On
12 March 252 dams were inspected and it was
discovered that six embankment dams had shallow
cracks on their crests. The reservoir at one
concrete gravity dam suffered a small non-serious
slope failure. All damaged dams are functioning
with no problems. Four dams within the quake
area were unreachable. When the roads clear,
experts will be dispatched to conduct further
investigations.In the immediate aftermath
of the calamity, at least 1.5 million households
were reported to have lost access to water
supplies. By 21 March 2011, this number fell
to 1.04 million.
=== Electricity ===
According to the Japanese trade ministry,
around 4.4 million households served by Tōhoku
Electric Power (TEP) in northeastern Japan
were left without electricity. Several nuclear
and conventional power plants went offline
after the earthquake, reducing the Tokyo Electric
Power Company's (TEPCO) total capacity by
21 GW. Rolling blackouts began on 14 March
due to power shortages caused by the earthquake.
TEPCO, which normally provides approximately
40 GW of electricity, announced that it could
only provide about 30 GW. This was because
40% of the electricity used in the greater
Tokyo area was supplied by reactors in the
Niigata and Fukushima prefectures. The reactors
at the Fukushima Daiichi and Fukushima Dai-ni
plants were automatically taken offline when
the first earthquake occurred and sustained
major damage related to the earthquake and
subsequent tsunami. Rolling blackouts of approximately
three hours were experienced throughout April
and May while TEPCO scrambled to find a temporary
power solution. The blackouts affected Tokyo,
Kanagawa, Eastern Shizuoka, Yamanashi, Chiba,
Ibaraki, Saitama, Tochigi, and Gunma prefectures.
Voluntary reduced electricity use by consumers
in the Kanto area helped reduce the predicted
frequency and duration of the blackouts. By
21 March 2011, the number of households in
the north without electricity fell to 242,927.
Tōhoku Electric Power was not able to provide
the Kanto region with additional power, because
TEP's power plants were also damaged in the
earthquake. Kansai Electric Power Company
(Kepco) cannot share electricity, because
its system operates at 60 hertz, whereas TEPCO
and TEP operate their systems at 50 hertz;
this is due to early industrial and infrastructure
development in the 1880s that left Japan without
a unified national power grid. Two substations,
one in Shizuoka Prefecture and one in Nagano
Prefecture, were able to convert between frequencies
and transfer electricity from Kansai to Kanto
and Tōhoku, but their capacity to do so is
limited to 1 GW. With the damage to so many
power plants, it may be years before a long-term
solution can be found.In an effort to help
alleviate the shortage, three steel manufacturers
in the Kanto region contributed electricity
produced by their in-house conventional power
stations to TEPCO for distribution to the
general public. Sumitomo Metal Industries
could produce up to 500 MW, JFE Steel 400
MW, and Nippon Steel 500 MW of electric power
Auto and auto parts makers in Kanto and Tōhoku
agreed in May 2011 to operate their factories
on Saturdays and Sundays and close on Thursdays
and Fridays to assist in alleviating the electricity
shortage during the summer of 2011. Additionally,
the public and other companies were also encouraged
to conserve electricity in the 2011 summer
months (Setsuden).The expected electricity
crisis in 2011 summer have been successfully
prevented thanks to all the setsuden measures,
peak electricity consumption recorded by TEPCO
during the period was 49.22GW, which is 10.77GW
(18%) lower than the peak consumption in the
previous year. The overall electricity consumption
during the entire July and August was also
14% less than the previous year. The peak
electricity consumption within TEP's area
was 12.46GW during the 2011 summer, 3.11GW
(20%) less than the peak consumption in the
previous year, and the overall consumption
have been reduced by 11% in July with 17%
in August compared to previous year. Japanese
government continue to ask the public to conserve
electricity for several years until year 2016,
when it predicted that the supply will be
sufficient to meet demand, thanks to the deepening
of the mindset to conserve electricity among
corporate and general public, addition of
new electricity providers due to the electricity
liberalization policy, increased output from
renewable energy as well as fossil fuel power
stations, as well as sharing of electricity
between different electricity companies.
=== Oil, gas and coal ===
A 220,000-barrel (35,000 m3)-per-day oil refinery
of Cosmo Oil Company was set on fire by the
quake at Ichihara, Chiba Prefecture, to the
east of Tokyo. It was extinguished after ten
days, injuring six people, and destroying
storage tanks. Others halted production due
to safety checks and power loss.
In Sendai, a 145,000-barrel (23,100 m3)-per-day
refinery owned by the largest refiner in Japan,
JX Nippon Oil & Energy, was also set ablaze
by the quake. Workers were evacuated, but
tsunami warnings hindered efforts to extinguish
the fire until 14 March, when officials planned
to do so.An analyst estimates that consumption
of various types of oil may increase by as
much as 300,000 barrels (48,000 m3) per day
(as well as LNG), as back-up power plants
burning fossil fuels try to compensate for
the loss of 11 GW of Japan's nuclear power
capacity.The city-owned plant for importing
liquefied natural gas in Sendai was severely
damaged, and supplies were halted for at least
a month.In addition to refining and storage,
several power plants were damaged. These include
Sendai #4, New-Sendai #1 and #2, Haranomachi
#1 and #2, Hirono #2 and #4 and Hitachinaka
#1.
=== Nuclear power plants ===
The Fukushima Daiichi, Fukushima Daini, Onagawa
Nuclear Power Plant and Tōkai nuclear power
stations, consisting of a total eleven reactors,
were automatically shut down following the
earthquake. Higashidōri, also on the northeast
coast, was already shut down for a periodic
inspection. Cooling is needed to remove decay
heat after a Generation II reactor has been
shut down, and to maintain spent fuel pools.
The backup cooling process is powered by emergency
diesel generators at the plants and at Rokkasho
nuclear reprocessing plant. At Fukushima Daiichi
and Daini, tsunami waves overtopped seawalls
and destroyed diesel backup power systems,
leading to severe problems at Fukushima Daiichi,
including three large explosions and radioactive
leakage. Subsequent analysis found that many
Japanese nuclear plants, including Fukushima
Daiichi, were not adequately protected against
tsunamis. Over 200,000 people were evacuated.The
aftershock on 7 April caused the loss of external
power to Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant and Higashidori
Nuclear Power Plant but backup generators
were functional. Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant
lost 3 of 4 external power lines and temporarily
lost cooling function in its spent fuel pools
for "20 to 80 minutes". A spill of "up to
3.8 litres" of radioactive water also occurred
at Onagawa following the aftershock.A report
by the IAEA in 2012 found that the Onagawa
Nuclear Power Plant, the closest nuclear plant
to the epicenter of the 2011 earthquake and
tsunami, had remained largely undamaged. The
plant's 3 reactors automatically shut down
without damage and all safety systems functioned
as designed. The plant's 14-metre-high (46
ft) seawall successfully withstood the tsunami.The
Energy Commissioner of the European Union
Günther Oettinger addressed the European
Parliament on 15 March, explaining that the
nuclear disaster was an "apocalypse". As the
nuclear crisis entered a second month, experts
recognized that Fukushima Daiichi is not the
worst nuclear accident ever, but it is the
most complicated. Nuclear experts stated that
Fukushima will go down in history as the second-worst
nuclear accident ever. While it was not as
bad as the Chernobyl disaster, it was worse
than the Three Mile Island accident. It could
take months or years to learn how damaging
the release of dangerous isotopes has been
to human health and food supplies, and the
surrounding countryside.Later analysis indicated
three reactors at Fukushima I (Units 1, 2,
and 3) had suffered meltdowns and continued
to leak coolant water, and by summer the Vice-minister
for Economy, Trade and Industry, the head
of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency,
and the head of the Agency for Natural Resources
and Energy, had lost their jobs.In 2013, only
two nuclear reactors in Japan had been restarted
since the shutdowns of 2011. As of February
2019, there are 42 operable reactors in Japan.
Of these, only 9 reactors in 5 power plants
are operating after having been restarted
post-2011.
==== 
Fukushima meltdowns ====
Japan declared a state of emergency following
the failure of the cooling system at the Fukushima
Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, resulting in
the evacuation of nearby residents. Officials
from the Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety
Agency reported that radiation levels inside
the plant were up to 1,000 times normal levels,
and that radiation levels outside the plant
were up to 8 times normal levels. Later, a
state of emergency was also declared at the
Fukushima Daini nuclear power plant about
11 km (6.8 mi) south. This brought the total
number of problematic reactors to six.It was
reported that radioactive iodine was detected
in the tap water in Fukushima, Tochigi, Gunma,
Tokyo, Chiba, Saitama, and Niigata, and radioactive
caesium in the tap water in Fukushima, Tochigi
and Gunma. Radioactive caesium, iodine, and
strontium were also detected in the soil in
some places in Fukushima. There may be a need
to replace the contaminated soil. Many radioactive
hotspots were found outside the evacuation
zone, including Tokyo. Food products were
also found contaminated by radioactive matter
in several places in Japan. On 5 April 2011,
the government of the Ibaraki Prefecture banned
the fishing of sand lance after discovering
that this species was contaminated by radioactive
caesium above legal limits. As late as July
2013 slightly elevated levels of radioactivity
were found in beef on sale at Tokyo markets.
==== Incidents elsewhere ====
A fire occurred in the turbine section of
the Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant following
the earthquake. The blaze was in a building
housing the turbine, which is sited separately
from the plant's reactor, and was soon extinguished.
The plant was shut down as a precaution.On
13 March the lowest-level state of emergency
was declared regarding the Onagawa plant as
radioactivity readings temporarily exceeded
allowed levels in the area of the plant. Tōhoku
Electric Power Co. stated this may have been
due to radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi
nuclear accidents but was not from the Onagawa
plant itself.As a result of 7 April aftershock,
Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant lost 3 of 4 external
power lines and lost cooling function for
as much as 80 minutes. A spill of a couple
of litres of radioactive water occurred at
Onagawa.The number 2 reactor at Tōkai Nuclear
Power Plant was shut down automatically. On
14 March it was reported that a cooling system
pump for this reactor had stopped working;
however, the Japan Atomic Power Company stated
that there was a second operational pump sustaining
the cooling systems, but that two of three
diesel generators used to power the cooling
system were out of order.
=== Wind power ===
None of Japan's commercial wind turbines,
totaling over 2300 MW in nameplate capacity,
failed as a result of the earthquake and tsunami,
including the Kamisu offshore wind farm directly
hit by the tsunami.
=== Transport ===
Japan's transport network suffered severe
disruptions. Many sections of Tōhoku Expressway
serving northern Japan were damaged. The expressway
did not reopen to general public use until
24 March 2011. All railway services were suspended
in Tokyo, with an estimated 20,000 people
stranded at major stations across the city.
In the hours after the earthquake, some train
services were resumed. Most Tokyo area train
lines resumed full service by the next day—12
March. Twenty thousand stranded visitors spent
the night of 11–12 March inside Tokyo Disneyland.A
tsunami wave flooded Sendai Airport at 15:55
JST, about 1 hour after the initial quake,
causing severe damage. Narita and Haneda Airport
both briefly suspended operations after the
quake, but suffered little damage and reopened
within 24 hours. Eleven airliners bound for
Narita were diverted to nearby Yokota Air
Base.
Various train services around Japan were also
canceled, with JR East suspending all services
for the rest of the day. Four trains on coastal
lines were reported as being out of contact
with operators; one, a four-car train on the
Senseki Line, was found to have derailed,
and its occupants were rescued shortly after
8 am the next morning. Minami-Kesennuma Station
on the Kesennuma Line was obliterated save
for its platform; 62 of 70 (31 of 35) JR East
train lines suffered damage to some degree;
in the worst-hit areas, 23 stations on 7 lines
were washed away, with damage or loss of track
in 680 locations and the 30-km radius around
the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant unable
to be assessed.There were no derailments of
Shinkansen bullet train services in and out
of Tokyo, but their services were also suspended.
The Tōkaidō Shinkansen resumed limited service
late in the day and was back to its normal
schedule by the next day, while the Jōetsu
and Nagano Shinkansen resumed services late
on 12 March. Services on Yamagata Shinkansen
resumed with limited numbers of trains on
31 March.Derailments were minimized because
of an early warning system that detected the
earthquake before it struck. The system automatically
stopped all high-speed trains, which minimized
the damage.The Tōhoku Shinkansen line was
worst hit, with JR East estimating that 1,100
sections of the line, varying from collapsed
station roofs to bent power pylons, will need
repairs. Services on the Tōhoku Shinkansen
partially resumed only in Kantō area on 15
March, with one round-trip service per hour
between Tokyo and Nasu-Shiobara, and Tōhoku
area service partially resumed on 22 March
between Morioka and Shin-Aomori. Services
on Akita Shinkansen resumed with limited numbers
of trains on 18 March. Service between Tokyo
and Shin-Aomori was restored by May, but at
lower speeds due to ongoing restoration work;
the pre-earthquake timetable was not reinstated
until late September.
The rolling blackouts brought on by the crises
at the nuclear power plants in Fukushima had
a profound effect on the rail networks around
Tokyo starting on 14 March. Major railways
began running trains at 10–20 minute intervals,
rather than the usual 3–5 minute intervals,
operating some lines only at rush hour and
completely shutting down others; notably,
the Tōkaidō Main Line, Yokosuka Line, Sōbu
Main Line and Chūō-Sōbu Line were all stopped
for the day. This led to near-paralysis within
the capital, with long lines at train stations
and many people unable to come to work or
get home. Railway operators gradually increased
capacity over the next few days, until running
at approximately 80% capacity by 17 March
and relieving the worst of the passenger congestion.
=== Telecommunications ===
Cellular and landline phone service suffered
major disruptions in the affected area. Immediately
after the earthquake cellular communication
was jammed across much of Japan due to a surge
of network activity. On the day of the quake,
American broadcaster NPR was unable to reach
anyone in Sendai with working phone or Internet.
Internet services were largely unaffected
in areas where basic infrastructure remained,
despite the earthquake having damaged portions
of several undersea cable systems landing
in the affected regions; these systems were
able to reroute around affected segments onto
redundant links. Within Japan, only a few
websites were initially unreachable. Several
Wi-Fi hotspot providers reacted to the quake
by providing free access to their networks,
and some American telecommunications and VoIP
companies such as AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, T-Mobile
and VoIP companies such as netTALK and Vonage
have offered free calls to (and in some cases,
from) Japan for a limited time, as did Germany's
Deutsche Telekom.
=== Defense ===
Matsushima Air Field of the Japan Self-Defense
Force in Miyagi Prefecture was struck by the
tsunami, flooding the base and resulting in
damage to all 18 Mitsubishi F-2 fighter jets
of the 21st Fighter Training Squadron. 12
of the aircraft were scrapped, while the remaining
6 were slated for repair at a cost of 80 billion
yen ($1 billion), exceeding the original cost
of the aircraft.
=== Space center ===
JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency)
evacuated the Tsukuba Space Center in Tsukuba,
Ibaraki. The Center, which houses a control
room for part of the International Space Station,
was shut down and some damage was reported.
The Tsukuba control center resumed full operations
for the space station's Kibo laboratory and
the HTV cargo craft on 21 March 2011.
=== Cultural properties ===
754 cultural properties were damaged across
nineteen prefectures, including five National
Treasures (at Zuigan-ji, Ōsaki Hachiman-gū,
Shiramizu Amidadō, and Seihaku-ji); 160 Important
Cultural Properties (including at Sendai Tōshō-gū,
the Kōdōkan, and Entsū-in, with its western
decorative motifs); one hundred and forty-four
Monuments of Japan (including Matsushima,
Takata-matsubara, Yūbikan, and the Site of
Tagajō); six Groups of Traditional Buildings;
and four Important Tangible Folk Cultural
Properties. Stone monuments at the UNESCO
World Heritage Site: Shrines and Temples of
Nikkō were toppled. In Tokyo, there was damage
to Koishikawa Kōrakuen, Rikugien, Hamarikyū
Onshi Teien, and the walls of Edo Castle.
Information on the condition of collections
held by museums, libraries and archives is
still incomplete. There was no damage to the
Historic Monuments and Sites of Hiraizumi
in Iwate Prefecture, and the recommendation
for their inscription on the UNESCO World
Heritage List in June was seized upon as a
symbol of international recognition and recovery.
== Aftermath ==
The aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami
included both a humanitarian crisis and a
major economic impact. The tsunami resulted
in over 340,000 displaced people in the Tōhoku
region, and shortages of food, water, shelter,
medicine, and fuel for survivors. In response
the Japanese government mobilized the Self-Defence
Forces (under Joint Task Force – Tōhoku,
led by Lieutenant General Eiji Kimizuka),
while many countries sent search and rescue
teams to help search for survivors. Aid organizations
both in Japan and worldwide also responded,
with the Japanese Red Cross reporting $1 billion
in donations. The economic impact included
both immediate problems, with industrial production
suspended in many factories, and the longer
term issue of the cost of rebuilding which
has been estimated at ¥10 trillion ($122
billion). In comparison to the 1995 Great
Hanshin earthquake, the East Japan earthquake
brought serious damage to an extremely wide
range.The aftermath of the twin disasters
also left Japan's coastal cities and towns
with nearly 25 million tons of debris. In
Ishinomaki alone, there were 17 trash collection
sites 180 metres (590 ft) long and at least
4.5 metres (15 ft) high. An official in the
city's government trash disposal department
estimated that it would take three years to
empty these sites.In April 2015, authorities
off the coast of Oregon discovered debris
that is thought to be from a boat destroyed
during the tsunami. Cargo contained yellowtail
jack fish, a species that lives off the coast
of Japan, still alive. KGW estimates that
more than 1 million tons of debris still remain
in the Pacific Ocean.
== Humanitarian response ==
According to Japan's foreign ministry, 116
countries and 28 international organizations
offered assistance. Japan specifically requested
assistance from teams from Australia, New
Zealand, South Korea, and the United States.
== Media coverage ==
Japan's national public broadcaster, NHK,
and Japan Satellite Television suspended their
usual programming to provide ongoing coverage
of the situation. Other nationwide Japanese
and international TV networks also broadcast
uninterrupted coverage of the disaster. Ustream
Asia broadcast live feeds of NHK, Tokyo Broadcasting
System, Nippon TV, Fuji TV, TV Asahi, TV Tokyo,
Tokyo MX, TV Kanagawa, and CNN on the Internet
starting on 12 March 2011. YokosoNews, an
Internet webcast in Japan, dedicated its broadcast
to the latest news gathered from Japanese
news stations, translating them in real time
to English.It was noted that the Japanese
news media has been at times overly cautious
to avoid panic and reliance on confusing statements
by experts and officials.In this national
crisis, the Japanese government provided Japanese
Sign Language (JSL) interpreting at the press
conferences related to the earthquake and
tsunami. Television broadcasts of the press
conferences of Prime Minister Naoto Kan and
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano included
simultaneous JSL interpreters standing next
to the Japanese flag on the same platform.According
to Jake Adelstein, most Japanese media accepted
and parroted the misinformation put out by
the Japanese government and TEPCO about the
unfolding Fukushima nuclear crisis. Notable
exceptions, according to Adelstein, were newspapers
Sankei Shimbun and Chunichi Shimbun which
questioned the accuracy of the information
coming from the government and TEPCO. Because
of the unquestioning nature of most Japanese
media to hold to the "party line", many Japanese
mid-level officials and experts spoke to foreign
media to get their opinions and observations
publicized.Atsushi Funahashi, director of
Nuclear Nation notes that "when the overseas
media was calling Fukushima a 'meltdown,'
the Japanese government and media waited two
months before admitting it."Nine days after
the earthquake hit, a visualization and sonification
were uploaded to YouTube allowing listeners
to hear the earthquake as it unfolded in time.
Two days of seismic activity made available
by the IRIS Consortium were compressed into
two minutes of sound. The large number of
views made the video one of the most popular
examples of sonification on the web.Also,
following the earthquake, for the first time
in Japanese history, the Emperor addressed
the nation in a pre-recorded television broadcast.
== Scientific and research response ==
Seismologists anticipated a very large quake
would strike in the same place as the 1923
Great Kantō earthquake — in the Sagami
Trough, southwest of Tokyo. The Japanese government
had tracked plate movements since 1976 in
preparation for the so-called Tokai earthquake,
predicted to take place in that region. However,
occurring as it did 373 km (232 mi) north
east of Tokyo, the Tōhoku earthquake came
as a surprise to seismologists. While the
Japan Trench was known for creating large
quakes, it had not been expected to generate
quakes above an 8.0 magnitude. The Headquarters
For Earthquake Research Promotion setup by
Japanese government have then reassessed the
long term risk of trench-type earthquakes
around Japan, and it was announced in November
2011 that, combining with researches on 869
Sanriku earthquake, an earthquake similar
to this one (with a magnitude of Mw 8.4–9.0)
would take place in the area between off the
coast of Pacific side of the Northeast Japan
in an average of every 600 years intervals
(See also Seismicity of the Sanriku coast),
and it is also assessed that a tsunami-earthquake
with a tsunami magnitude scales (Mt) between
8.6 and 9.0 (Similar to 1896 Sanriku earthquake,
the Mt for the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake is
9.1–9.4) will have a 30% chance to occur
within 30 years.The quake gave scientists
the opportunity to collect a large amount
of data to model the seismic events that took
place in great detail. These data are expected
to be used in a variety of ways, providing
unprecedented information about how buildings
respond to shaking, and other effects. Gravimetric
data from the quake have been used to create
a model for increased warning time compared
to seismic models, as gravity fields travel
faster than seismic waves.Researchers have
also analysed the economic effects of this
earthquake and have developed models of the
nationwide propagation via interfirm supply
networks of the shock originated in Tōhoku
region.Researchers soon after the full extent
of the disaster was known launched a project
to gather all digital material relating to
the disaster into an online searchable archive
to form the basis of future research into
the events during and after the disaster.
The Japan Digital Archive is presented in
English and Japanese and is hosted at the
Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies at
Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts.
Some of the first research to come from the
archive was a 2014 paper from the Digital
Methods Initiative in Amsterdam about patterns
of Twitter usage around the time of the disaster.
After the 2011 disaster the UNISDR, United
Nations International Strategy for Disaster
Reduction, held its World Conference on Disaster
Risk Reduction in Tohoku in March 2015, which
produced the Sendai Framework document to
guide efforts by international development
agencies to act before disasters instead of
reacting to them after the fact. At this time
Japan's Disaster Management Office (Naikakufu
Bosai Keikaku) published a bi-lingual guide
in Japanese and English, Disaster Management
in Japan, to outline the several varieties
of natural disaster and the preparations being
made for the eventuality of each. In the fall
of 2016 Japan's National Research Institute
for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience
(NIED; Japanese abbreviation, Bosai Kaken;
full name Bousai Kagaku Gijutsu Kenkyusho)
launched the online interactive "Disaster
Chronology Map for Japan, 416–2013" (map
labels in Japanese) to display in visual form
the location, disaster time, and date across
the islands.
An expedition named Japan Trench Fast Drilling
Project have been conducted in year 2012–2013
to drill oceanfloor boreholes through the
fault-zone of the earthquake and gathered
important data about the rupture mechanism
and physical properties of the fault that
caused the huge earthquake and tsuanmi which
devastated much of northeast Japan.
== See also ==
Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster
Health crisis
List of earthquakes in 2011
List of earthquakes in Japan
List of historical tsunamis
Lists of earthquakes
Map to chronicle all known disasters in Japan
from 416–2013 (labels in Japanese)
Nuclear power in Japan § Seismicity
Ryou-Un Maru
Seismicity of the Sanriku coast
== Notes
