The world is in shock over the destruction from the terrible earthquake in Haiti, and the Japanese media has been covering the tragedy closely. Being one of the most volcanically active countries in the world, Japan is no stranger to earthquakes, and here small to medium quakes happen all the time, as my knocked-over Star Wars figure collection can attest. This Sunday happens to mark the 15th anniversary of the Great Hanshin Earthquake, the terrible 7.3 magnitude quake which shook Kobe, Osaka and Kyoto back in 1995. Because the Kansai area usually has less seismic activity than Tokyo, the earthquake safety codes were less strict, which caused a horrible amount of damage and the loss of more than 5000 lives. Our prayers go out to everyone affected by this terrible new tragedy…
Earthquake-prone Japan definitely feels Haiti’s pain right now.