What do you like to do while riding in a train?  Look out the window?  Read?

I like to do both.

Recently I took a train ride, so I read about the recent earthquake damage in Kyushu in the children’s newspaper. (Kodomo Asahi Shinbun)

This says that over forty people were killed.  (This number may be higher now.  I’m not sure.)

This article says the bullet train derailed during one of the earthquakes (presumably the first large one.)  Nobody was killed, fortunately, and I have since heard on the television news that the bullet train is now running properly again.

This explains the main plates.  As you can see in the illustration of Japan, there are four plates moving in different directions.

Underneath that illustration, there is a graph which tells the major earthquakes in Japan in recent years.  I’ll explain the graph:

1995  Magnitude 7.3  Kobe:  You probably weren’t born yet, but in 1995, there was a major earthquake in the area of Kobe City.  Lots of people were killed.

2004  Magnitude 6.8 Niigata:  Then in 2004, there was a strong earthquake in the Niigata Prefecture area.

2011 Magnitude 9.0  Tohoku:  You probably remember the next one:  In 2011, there was a huge earthquake off the coast of Japan which resulted in a devastating tsunami.

2016  Magnitude 6.5  Kyushu:  And then finally, the recent earthquakes in Kyushu.  They actually had two major earthquakes.  The second was more than Magnitude 7, I believe.

Do you live in an area with earthquakes?  It’s scary, isn’t it.

All Japanese live with the knowledge that there is a possibility of an earthquake at any time.   They combat their fears by preparation:  strong buildings and other structures, emergency supplies, drills, emergency plans, and so on.    They want to be prepared when the next one hits.

And then also in Japan,  there is a bit of “Shikata ga nai…..”  That means “It can’t be helped….”

Whatever will happen—–will happen.