More than 50 aftershocks shake Japan after Friday's quake

A little lacking in information, the article mentions the houses collapsing and the strict building regulations but no connection between the two to explain how this happened?

One assumes that the services will be up and running quickly, it’s not as if this is a surprise event or something that has never happened before!

Earthquakes happen all over Japan. In this case, the most worrying thing is Shika Nuclear Power Plant, on two active fault lines with a history of accident.

Hope every one is doing okay, 12km depth is too close to surface according to experts.

The country has strict construction regulations intended to ensure buildings can withstand strong quakes and routinely holds emergency drills to prepare for a major jolt.

But does it really in the areas affected?

That old house, with its heavy roof, in the picture stood no chance and looked to be fairly close to falling down anyway.

Strict construction regulations mostly do not apply to private houses. Only to say new houses are better than older ones.

Earthquakes are common in Japan, which sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", an arc of intense seismic activity that stretches through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin.

Let's build some more nuclear plants and hope for the best.

@wallace

Confidently stated but completely false. It is just that building regulations are not made retrospective - you will see a marked difference in prices in house built before and after 1995. As someone else has pointed out, that old house with its heavy tile roof would struggle against a stiff breeze.

The country has strict construction regulations intended to ensure buildings can withstand strong quakes and routinely holds emergency drills to prepare for a major jolt.

As I stated before, heavy tiled roofs built on wooden walls collapse like the one in the above picture has.

bobcatfish - you're right.

The building code was first changed in 1981 after the big Miyagi quake in 1978. All houses had to be built to withstand a 6 - 7 shake on the Japanese Shindo scale.

This was updated esp for wooden framed houses after the 1985 Hanshin quake.

My house built in the late 80s has a Shin Taishin rating meaning it was built to the new standards.

Many buildings built to this standard survived the Hanshin quake, evidence of it's worth.

Earlier houses built to the old Kyu Taishin standard are the ones most likely to collapse.

The articles photo obviously shows one of these houses.

Of course other factors such as building materials, soil, fault lines etc also come into play.

Bottom line is probably no house can be said to be "earth-quake proof" so we should all take precautions.

bobcatfish

@wallace

Confidently stated but completely false. It is just that building regulations are not made retrospective - you will see a marked difference in prices in house built before and after 1995. As someone else has pointed out, that old house with its heavy tile roof would struggle against a stiff breeze.

I am not incorrect. Building codes are updated after every major earthquake like Kobe and Tohoku.

There are no regulations banning heavy ceramic titles on houses. Modern houses usually don't have them mainly because of the cost factors. You can still build a 100% traditional house with a ceramic roof.

The main strengthening of modern houses is metal brackets used on jointing timbers. There is a definite lack of diagonals in houses which would increase strength.

But other buildings like apartment blocks are now built with greatly increased standards. Built on piles with earthquake cushion pillars allowing the building to rock without collapsing.

Only apartment blocks with more than 11 floors are required to have sprinkler systems. In an earthquake collapse, gas lines are broken and fires start. Many fires in the Kobe earthquake.

Local authorities provide free earthquake surveys which homeowners can request, Very extensive and will locate and point out all the weak places and what would likely happen in an earthquake.

subsoil is also an important factor in earthquakes. Modern houses will survive better than older ones.

"No building can be designed to avoid all damages from an earthquake, regardless of the magnitude. This is because how much a building shakes in a tremor is based on two main factors: (1) the design, materials, etc. of the building itself, and (2) the type of subsoil, rock, etc. located beneath the building site. Even well-designed buildings can suffer significant damage from a “small” earthquake, if they are built in an area where there is a very weak soil base. Generally, buildings that are simple in design and either square or rectangular-shaped do well in a quake."

Japanese clay roof tiles are still used

https://www.mca-tile.com/oriental-japenese/

A lot of old houses in Suzu. I drove through that area last summer so I know. Earthquakes aren't that common in that region too. Could be a sign of things to come.

I'm nitpicking maybe, but old houses with heavy tiles have a tendency to tilt over rather than collapse due to the top heavy swaying. Still dangerous, but not quite as dangerous as a full collapse. I remember going through Kobe following the 1995 earthquake. There were many houses that had tilted over, but the ugliest sight was of older 5-story apartment buildings where a single floor had completely collapsed.

A lot of old houses in Suzu. I drove through that area last summer so I know. Earthquakes aren't that common in that region too. Could be a sign of things to come.

”A sign of things to come”? No lo comprendo, Señor.

”A sign of things to come”? No lo comprendo, Señor.

A small cluster of earthquakes is often a sign that a larger one is coming. A 6.5 is not common in that part of Japan so maybe a larger one is coming or perhaps elsewhere. Just speculating. Also, please use English. Your post comes across as condescending.