Norimitsu Onishi, The New York Times, Updated: March 11, 2011 22:32 IST



From seawalls that line stretches of Japan's coastline, to skyscrapers that sway to absorb earthquakes, to building codes that are among the world's most rigorous, no country may be better prepared to withstand earthquakes than Japan.

Had any other populous country suffered the 8.9 magnitude earthquake that shook Japan on Friday, tens of thousands of people might already be counted among the dead. So far, Japan's death toll is in the hundreds, although it is certain to rise somewhat.



Over the years, Japan has spent billions of dollars developing the most advanced technology against earthquakes and tsunamis. The Japanese, who regularly experience smaller earthquakes and have lived through major ones, know how to react to quakes and tsunamis because of regular drills -- unlike Southeast Asians, many of whom died in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami because they lingered near the coast despite clear warnings to flee.

Communities along Japan's coastline, especially in areas that have been hit by tsunamis in the past, tend to be the best prepared. Local authorities can usually contact residents directly through warning systems set up in each home; footpaths and other escape routes leading to higher ground tend to be clearly marked.



In the country that gave the world the word tsunami, Japan, especially in the 1980's and 1990's, built concrete seawalls in many communities, some as high as 40 feet. In addition, some coastal towns have set up networks of sensors that can sound alarms in every residence and automatically closed floodgates when an earthquake strikes to prevent waves from surging up rivers. Ports are sometimes equipped with raised platforms. 

Critics of the seawalls, however, say they are eyesores and bad for the environment. The seawalls, they say, can instill a false sense of security among coastal residents and discourage them from participating in regular evacuation drills. Moreover, by blocking residents' view of the ocean, the seawalls reduce peoples' ability to understand the sea by observing wave patterns, critics say. 

According to the national broadcaster NHK, waves from Friday's tsunami spilled over some seawalls in the affected areas. But it was too soon to say whether other seawalls or regular evacuation drills -- or a combination of the two -- prevented casualty figures from climbing higher.