The 2000 Tottori earthquake () occurred on 6 October 2000, at with a

moment magnitude The moment magnitude scale (MMS; denoted explicitly with or Mwg, and generally implied with use of a single M for magnitude) is a measure of an earthquake's magnitude ("size" or strength) based on its seismic moment. was defined in a 1979 paper ...

of 6.7 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). The

epicenter The epicenter (), epicentre, or epicentrum in seismology is the point on the Earth's surface directly above a hypocenter or focus, the point where an earthquake or an underground explosion originates. Determination The primary purpose of a ...

was located in Nambu, near the border with

Yasugi, Shimane is a city located in Shimane Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 35,965 in 14257 households and a population density of 85 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Yasugi is located in far eastern Sh ...

. About $150 million in damage was caused, with 109,095 homes damaged or destroyed, and at least 182 people were injured.

Earthquake

The

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on Mar ...

(USGS) reported a moment magnitude of 6.7 and a focal depth of for the earthquake. The

Japan Meteorological Agency The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA; ''気象庁, Kishō-chō'') is a division of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism dedicated to the Scientific, scientific observation and research of natural phenomena. Headquartered ...

recorded a magnitude of 7.3. This was the first time since the seismic intensity classification was revised in 1996 that a JMA maximum seismic intensity of 6+ or higher was recorded. A USGS seismic installation at

Hino Hino may refer to: Places Estonia * Hino, Põlva County * Hino, Võru County ** Lake Hino Japan * Hino, Shiga * Hino, Tokyo * Hino, Tottori ** Hino District, Tottori ** Hino River Transportation * Hino Motors, a Japanese truck manufacturer own ...

recorded 0.9402 ''g'' in ground acceleration (pga) and in ground velocity; the station data corresponded to a Modified Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). The earthquake was an almost pure left-lateral

strike-slip In geology, a fault is a planar fracture or discontinuity in a volume of rock across which there has been significant displacement as a result of rock-mass movements. Large faults within Earth's crust result from the action of plate tectonic ...

event. It was not caused by the activity of a known fault, but by the activity of an unidentified underground fault. Multiple ground cracks appeared due to underground displacement. The aftershock area was distributed along the source fault of the main shock, from Yasugi City in Shimane Prefecture to Hino District in Tottori Prefecture, extending from south-southeast to north-northwest in a length of approximately 30 km and a depth of approximately 15 km. Prior to the earthquake, swarms of magnitude 5 earthquake activity occurred along the deep extension of the fault in 1989, 1990, and 1997. The earthquake also caused 367 landslides; 348 in Tottori, 18 in Okayama and one in

Tokushima is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Tokushima Prefecture has a population of 682,439 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,146 Square kilometre, km2 (1,601 sq mi). Tokushima Prefecture b ...

Impact

At least 182 people were injured, 39 of them seriously, due to the earthquake, including 141 in Tottori, 18 in

Okayama is the prefectural capital, capital Cities of Japan, city of Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of Japan. The Okayama metropolitan area, centered around the city, has the largest urban employment zone in the Chugoku region of western J ...

, 11 in Shimane, four in

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

, three in

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...

, two in Kagawa, and one each in Hyōgo,

Wakayama Wakayama may refer to: * Wakayama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan * Wakayama (city), the capital city of Wakayama Prefecture, Japan * Wakayama Station, a train station in Wakayama, Wakayama * Wakayama University, a national university in Wakayama, ...

and Yamaguchi. The earthquake completely destroyed 2,158 homes, severely damaged 16,220 and partially damaged 90,717 others, with all structural collapses occurring in Tottori, Okayama and Shimane. Additionally, 6,801 waterways, 700 cultural and educational facilities, 667 roads, 254 public buildings, 91 harbors, 78 rivers, 47 hospitals, 20 bridges, five ships and 2,943 other structures were also affected. Liquefaction was reported in Sakaiminato City and homes were destroyed in

Yonago is a Cities of Japan, city in western Tottori Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 146,139 in 68,534 households and a population density of 1100 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . It is the prefecture's second ...

, and other areas. Damage estimates exceeded ¥23.63 billion (US$150 million).

References

External links

* {{Earthquakes in Japan Tottori earthquake Tottori earthquake Tottori earthquake Earthquakes of the Heisei era Buried rupture earthquakes Tottori earthquake

Earthquake

Impact

See also

References

Further reading

External links