Japan eyes 80% cut in 298,000 death toll for potential megaquake in Nankai Trough

Japan is seeking to reduce by 80 per cent in the next decade its estimated 298,000 death toll from a potential megaquake in the Nankai Trough.

Authorities also intend to halve the maximum number of buildings expected to be completely destroyed in such a disaster from the current projection of 2.35 million.

The targets align with a 2104 basic blueprint but will also take into account the latest damage estimates released in March, according to the Kyodo news agency. A revised plan for emergency earthquake response and disaster mitigation for the next 10 years is in the works.

The draft was approved at a ruling Liberal Democratic Party panel meeting on Tuesday and is expected to be adopted by the government’s Central Disaster Management Council in early July.

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Japan’s ‘megaquake’ warning: what is it and how to prepare

The earthquake task force’s revised estimate showed only a 20 per cent reduction in 2014’s projected death toll of 332,000 and 2.5 million destroyed buildings, The Japan Times newspaper reported.