Japan Kobe Earthquake: Japan Commemorates 20th Anniversary Of Killer Quake
Twenty years after a devastating earthquake killed and injured thousands and flattened buildings and houses in Kobe, Japan, survivors gathered on Sunday to painfully remember the tragedy.
"Time has stopped for me. The memory of 20 years ago has frozen inside my heart. No matter how time passes, it does not dissipate," a Japanese man told Reuters.
Hundreds gathered on Sunday, the day the earthquake struck, to commemorate the tragedy. Candles were formed to make the figures "1995: 1.17" to remember the day.
Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko attended a ceremony in Hyogo Prefecture, marking the 20th anniversary of the earthquake. Hyogo held Memorial Walk and Safety Day on Saturday. A special memorial exhibition is on display at the Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, which shows photos and articles.
The disaster, which struck at about 5:46 a.m. on Jan. 17, 1995, was registered by the U.S. Geological Survey to be a magnitude 6.8 earthquake.
Of the more than 6,000 who died, 1,571 were from Kobe while 14,678 were injured, according to a 2005 report by the Kobe City government.
About 60 percent of those who died were at least 60 years, many of them crushed to death by collapsed houses.
The earthquake severely damaged public facilities including the city hall and hospitals. About 85 percent of schools were damaged.
The report said 67,421 structures in Kobe fully collapsed while 55,145 partially collapsed. After the earthquake, 6,965 structures were completely burned.
Kobe's Hanshin Expressway collapsed and railways were damaged in many areas. The port facility in Kobe was also damaged.
The report added that residents in evacuation centers suffered mental fatigue. "People's lives were greatly inconvenienced by the interruption of utility services and congested traffic conditions. The unemployment rate rose drastically following the quake," the report stated.
It took years before Kobe was restored.
The earthquake prompted the government to revise its building policies to make structures stronger.