I actually had to a presentation on the 1995 Kobe earthquake back in the day. It's probably a pretty good comparison case. Things I recall from my research: - Due to the traditional design of Japanese houses, they tended to have the rooves collapse and then bring the rest of the house down like a pack of cards. This, of course, only applies to the older not-so-earthquake-proof types, usually two-storey townhouse efforts. - Kobe has a man-made island in its harbour, constructed on resumed land. It's basically the port, and berths container ships. The island had concrete retaining walls which were cracked by the earthquake, so the island became waterlogged by the ocean getting through the retaining wall. Then half the island sank. Which is destructive in a very cool kind of way. :) - Kobe also had a major section of highway collapse, as per all the ones you see in California when they have earthquakes.
The Wikipedia article (bless its cotton socks) gives all sorts of info regarding loss of life, economic cost and damage accounts. Hope it helps you out!
Hee! I was here for the Kobe quake, and backpacked supplies in 5 days after it hit. It really is a good standard for mayhem. Thank you for reminding me that in my story, I definitely want all the highways to fall down. (The Kansai airport, needless to say, is going down like Atlantis.)
- Due to the traditional design of Japanese houses, they tended to have the rooves collapse and then bring the rest of the house down like a pack of cards. This, of course, only applies to the older not-so-earthquake-proof types, usually two-storey townhouse efforts.
- Kobe has a man-made island in its harbour, constructed on resumed land. It's basically the port, and berths container ships. The island had concrete retaining walls which were cracked by the earthquake, so the island became waterlogged by the ocean getting through the retaining wall. Then half the island sank. Which is destructive in a very cool kind of way. :)
- Kobe also had a major section of highway collapse, as per all the ones you see in California when they have earthquakes.
The Wikipedia article (bless its cotton socks) gives all sorts of info regarding loss of life, economic cost and damage accounts. Hope it helps you out!
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