On 11 March 2011 at 05:46 (UTC) Japan was struck by an earthquake of a magnitude 9.0, depth 24km, with the epicenter off its north-east coast. The earthquake generated a devastating tsunami (up to 38m waves) on the Pacific coast, whose consequences in terms of death toll, injuries, economic damage and environmental damage are still being calculated. On March 21, the World Bank estimated damage between US$122 billion and $235 billion. Japan's government said the cost of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated the northeast could reach $309 billion, making it the most expensive natural disaster on record.
HOUSING:
・Japan's National Police Agency said on April 3, 2011, that 190,000 buildings were destroyed or damaged by the quake and tsunami. Of those, 45,700 were destroyed. The damaged buildings included 29,500 structures in Miyagi Prefecture, 12,500 in Iwate Prefecture and 2,400 in Fukushima Prefecture
・Extensive work is being done to clean out the dirt from homes that have been flooded
・According to the Headquarters for Emergency Disaster Control, 11,564 temporary houses are under construction, and 4,679 houses will be constructed in the near future. Mr. Satoshi Sugai, National Disaster Management Director of Japan Red Cross Society estimated the target of Dec 2011 will be difficult to be successful.
・The temporary housings will be provided with refrigerators, washing machines, washers, heaters, etc.