Japan Adopts Plan to Cut Nankai Quake Deaths by 80 Pct

   Tokyo, July 1 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government decided Tuesday to seek to reduce the estimated number of deaths from a possible megaquake in the Nankai Trough off the country's Pacific coast by 80 pct over the next decade.
   The target is included in a revised basic plan to promote disaster prevention measures, which was adopted at the day's Central Disaster Prevention Council meeting, marking the first full revision of the original plan drawn up in 2014.
   According to the latest estimate disclosed in March, the death toll is expected to reach up to about 298,000.
   At the meeting, the government shared a proposal to designate 16 additional municipalities as "promotion areas" where intensive measures will be implemented. This will bring the total to 723 municipalities in 30 prefectures, mainly on the Pacific coast from Ibaraki to Okinawa prefectures.
   The addition, in response to new topographical data and other information based on new damage estimates, was approved by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba later.

(2025/07/01-19:41)

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