2017 will probably be regarded as the year when the Earth experienced the most natural disasters. We say natural but it’s common knowledge that these ‘natural’ disasters are actually human-caused. No doubt the role of climate change and the melting of the glaciers had a pivotal role in the recent bombardment of hurricanes.
Now, Japan has been hit by a strong earthquake that was just 200 miles from a nuclear power plant.
This was the same nuclear power plant that caused a meltdown after the 2011 quake and tsunami in Japan.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, Japan felt a 6.1 magnitude earthquake around 1:37 a.m. local time just east of Fukushima.
Back in 2011, the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant suffered a triple meltdown after a 9.0 magnitude earthquake just 80 miles off the coast. This forced the Japanese government to shut the plant down.
A 15-meter tsunami rushed over the walls of the plant to turn off the cooling stations as well as the power supply of three reactors. This led to a nuclear accident on March 11, 2011, and all three cores mostly melted within the first three days.
Fukushima
As of yet, Japanese officials have not decided to issue a tsunami warning.
This comes just mere days after Mexico experienced a 7.1 magnitude earthquake that led to hundreds of deaths and hundreds more missing.
BBC
More than 216 people have died in Mexico and many more are trapped under toppled buildings. At least 30 children are still missing according to President Enrique Pena Nieto.
And this earthquake was just a week after another 8.1 magnitude earthquake hit the southern coast of Mexico in the state of Oaxaca. That earthquake ended up taking at least 90 lives.
Science
According to the Japan Broadcasting Corp., Japan has sent 70 relief workers to help with the rescue efforts in Mexico.
The Independent
