Documentary: Japan – Aftermath of a disaster (Video)

Source: Al Jazeera

 Japan had been waiting decades for “the big one” to hit, an earthquake powerful enough to devastate the country.

Emergency services and the public were drilled in how to respond when the earth moved; thousands of kilometers of sea walls were built to protect the coast from tsunamis, the deadly after-effects of quakes out at sea.

But when the earthquake came on March 11, few would have predicted the devastation it caused.

The magnitude 9.0 quake, unleashed a tsunami so powerful, it tore through Japan’s defenses as though they were not there. The surge turned towns and cities into matchwood, killed thousands of people and caused a still-to-be resolved nuclear crisis.

Among the communities hit was the small port city of Miyako. In the days after the disaster its surviving citizens somehow had to carry on with their lives. This is their story.
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Deadly earthquake hits southern China

Officials say at least one person dead and 38 others injured, eight of them critically, in mountainous Yunnan province.

Source: aljazeera.com

An earthquake has struck southwest China’s mountainous Yunnan province, killing at least one person and injuring dozens of others.

The 6.0-magnitude struck on Tuesday at a shallow depth of 10km at 9.49 pm (13:49 GMT), the US Geological Survey (USGS) said, in a region that lies close to China’s borders with Myanmar and Laos.

MAP: EARTHQUAKES SINCE 1898 (IMAGE)

Map by John M Nelson

San Francisco earthquake injures dozens

Biggest quake in decades knocks out power to about 40,000 homes and businesses in northern San Francisco area.

Source: http://www.aljazeera.com

A 6.0-magnitude earthquake has rocked the northern San Francisco area, injuring dozens of people, damaging historic buildings, setting some homes on fire and causing power outages around the picturesque town of Napa.

Iran rocked by 6.3 magnitude earthquake

At least 60 people injured and power cut after major earthquake struck Iran’s Ilam province, according to state media.

Source: http://www.aljazeera.com

A 6.3 magnitude earthquake has struck a remote area in western Iran, leaving dozens injured and causing considerable damage.

The US Geological Survey said the quake hit 36km southeast of the western city of Abdanan, in Ilam province, close the border with Iraq.

USGS said the quake struck at 02:32 GMT on Monday, and its epicentre was at a depth of 10km.

1 killed and 17 injured in South African earthquake

The epicentre of the quake, illustrated by the star, was 170 kilometers southwest of Johannesburg, the U.S. Geological Survey said. (The U.S. Geological Survey)

Source: http://www.cbc.ca/

An earthquake shook buildings in Johannesburg and surrounding areas in South Africa’s most populous province on Tuesday, killing one person and injuring at least 17 at mining operations near the epicenter.

The magnitude-5.3 quake was centered in Orkney, 170 kilometers southwest of Johannesburg, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

Devastating aftermath of China 6.5 earthquake (Video)

 An aerial view of the town worst hit by a 6.5-magnitude earthquake in southwest China’s Yunnan Province has shown the extent of the devastation and it provided valuable information for the ongoing rescue operation. The footage of Longtoushan Town was shot on Monday morning by a drone operated by the communication detachment of an army reserve division in Yunnan.