More than 9,600 people would die with nearly 150,000 injured if
a mega-quake struck Tokyo, a disaster that would also level
large parts of the Japanese capital, a government projection
said Wednesday. The frightening simulation was released by the
Tokyo Metropolitan Government as Japan slowly rebuilds its
northeast coast, which was devastated by a magnitude 9.0 quake
in March last year that unleashed a deadly tsunami. The disaster
killed some 19,000 people and triggered the worst nuclear
accident in a generation. Tokyo was largely spared from the
damage, but if a smaller 7.3-magnitude quake struck the
sprawling metropolis it would leave about 9,600 dead and 147,000
people with injuries, including 21,900 seriously, the projection
said. About 5.2 million people would be unable to go home owing
to electricity and transportation damage while the temblor would
flatten or seriously damage some 378,000 buildings with about
188,000 structures burning to the ground. A huge tsunami would
strike isolated Pacific Ocean i