Earthquake and hypertension—from acute to chronic phase after the Great East Japan Earthquake

Abstract

On 11 March 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake hit the northeast part of Japan (the Tohoku region) with a magnitude of 9.0 on the Richter scale, which was one of the largest ocean-trench earthquakes ever recorded in Japan. The Earthquake caused huge damage, including 9,512 dead and 1,581 missing persons and 400,851 destroyed houses (as of 20 October 2016). It also forced many people (~400,000) to be evacuated to the temporary accommodations, such as public halls, gymnastic halls and scholastic institutions in disaster-stricken area. Especially in the seacoast area, the damage was significantly amplified by the Tsunami (The report on damage from the East Japan Earthquake. In: Fire and Disaster Mnagement Agency; 2016). Furthermore, the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant struck by the Tsunami got out of order, and hydrogen explosion occurred subsequently. Consequently, many residents living around the nuclear power plant were also forced to evacuate from their houses to the temporary accommodations, such as public halls, gymnastic halls and scholastic institutions in the Great East Japan Earthquake disaster.