Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake (January 18, 1995)
January, 1995, Kobe, Japan - Residents are left homeless overnight following a heavy earthquake in Kobe. The tremor registered as a magnitude 7.3 on the Richter scale hit this western Japan's port city in the morning of January 17, leaving more than 6,000 people dead and around 300,000 homeless. The damages included the ruin of 150,000 buildings, the collapse of 1 km of the Hanshin Expressway, the destruction of 120 of the 150 quays in the port and fires which raged over large portions of the city. (Photo by Haruyoshi Yamaguchi/AFLO) VTY -mis-