91% of Deaths in Japan's Noto Earthquake Caused by House Collapses

Yomiuri Shimbun "91 out of 100 victims
died due to housing collapse... Damage to old houses"

Among the 10 deaths caused by the magnitude 7.6 earthquake that occurred on the 1st in the Noto Peninsula, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, 9 people lost their lives due to the collapse of houses.

According to the Yomiuri Shimbun on the 21st, out of the 100 victims whose causes of death were announced by Ishikawa Prefecture as of the previous day, 91 died from house collapses, the highest number. Landslides and other soil disasters accounted for 8 deaths, followed by 1 death from a tsunami.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The death toll from this earthquake was 232 as of the previous day, with 22 people unaccounted for. Ishikawa Prefecture compiled and announced the causes of death for 100 victims whose families agreed to disclose the information.

The ages of the deceased ranged from 3 to 97 years old, with 60% being elderly people aged 70 or older. Professor Akiyoshi Nijimura of Tokushima University, who investigated the causes of death of victims during the 1995 Hanshin Earthquake, said, "During the Hanshin Earthquake, 54% of those who died in Kobe city died from asphyxiation due to building collapse, and 13% from crushing. Many victims in the Noto Peninsula earthquake were also trapped under collapsed buildings, and similar to the Hanshin Earthquake, many appear to have died from asphyxiation and other causes."

The collapse of old wooden houses due to the Noto earthquake is known to have caused many deaths. The number of houses damaged by the Noto earthquake is estimated to be about 40,000.

During the Noto earthquake, seismic waves called "Killer Pulse," with a period of 1 to 2 seconds, which have the power to shake and topple buildings with poor seismic resistance such as wooden houses, were observed. During the Hanshin Earthquake, this seismic wave also caused significant damage to wooden house areas.