FACT FILE: 

KOBE EARTHQUAKE 
JAPAN, 17/1/1995 
 

Introduction 

The earthquake in Kobe on January, 17, 1995 left 6,425 dead, injured 25,000, displaced 
300,000 people, damaged or destroyed 100,000 buildings and caused at least $132 billion 
worth of damage, or about 2.5 percent of Japan's national income, making it one of the 
most expensive natural disasters in history. Only about $3 billion was covered by 
insurance. More than 35,000 people were pulled from collapsed buildings by neighbors or 
rescue workers. Japanese refer to the disaster as the Great Hansin Earthquake 

 
 
 

DETAILS 
Beginning at 5:46am, the temblor lasted for 20 seconds, registered 6.9 on the Richter scale 
and packed a wallop of 240 kilotons of TNT. Over 50,000 buildings were destroyed or badly 
damaged and 300,000 people were left homeless. A major freeway collapsed, streets were 
uplifted, and railroad tracks buckled and twisted. Fire raged on and off for two days, and 
gas and water mains were ruptured. 

The epicenter of the earthquake was 40 miles away from Kobe in the Akashi Strait between 
Awaji Island and Honshu. During the quake the sides of the fault shifted 6 to 10 feet in 
opposite directions. The surface along the fault moved five feet in one place. This 
movement could be seen in a rice field on Awaji Island. 

CAUSES 

There were several reasons why the earthquake was so devastating. First of all the 
earthquake was very shallow, which means it is more likely to cause extensive damage. 
Second, Kobe lies in area that many Japanese thought was unlikely to be hit by a major 
earthquake and thus the residents there were not prepared for a major quake. Kobe is 
considered one of the nicest cities in Japan and ironically some people even moved there to 
escape earthquakes.It was caused by a strike-slip jolt (sudden lateral movement of one rock 
mass against another) on the Nojima Fault, which up until then was not considered a 
dangerous fault. 

DAMAGE 

Nearly 80 percent of the quake victims died from being crushed or suffocated in collapsed 
buildings. Shoddy construction and poor planning were blamed for the death toll being so 
high. Many people were killed when heavy typhoon-resistant tile roofs collapsed on top of 
them. 

BY-SVANIK GARG 

 
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