Apartment in Osaka to be tsunami evacuation point

An apartment building currently being constructed in Osaka's Yadogawa-ku has been designated as an evacuation site in the event of a tsunami.  This is the first new building in Japan to be designated prior to the beginning of apartment sales.

"Mikuni no Kawabe no Mori River Garden" is located alongside the Kanzakigawa River. The 15 story building with 197 apartments will be completed in January, 2013. The common hallways from the 3rd floor (7 meters high) and above can accommodate approximately 1000 evacuees in an emergency.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Apartment being built directly on top of fault line

In Toyonaka City, Osaka, construction work is continuing on a 14-storey apartment building on a site that is directly above an active fault line.

"Uniheim Senri Momoyamadai" is located in Higashi-izumigaoka 3 Chome and is directly above the Butsunenjiyama Fault - an active fault line that runs from the north of Toyonaka and south to Suita in Osaka. It is an extension to the Uemachi Fault, a relatively active fault line which has a 2~3% chance of producing an earthquake within the next 30 years, and a hypothesized magnitude of 7.2 would result in an estimated death toll of 42,000.Read more

by Zoe Ward