A Japanese government panel estimates that a powerful earthquake hitting directly below Tokyo could kill 23,000 people and cause over 900 billion dollars in damage.
The estimate, revised for the fist time in 8 years, is based on a scenario of a magnitude 7.3 quake occurring in southern Tokyo on a windy winter's evening.
The earthquake is likely to cause devastating jolts in central Tokyo and some places in three neighboring prefectures --- Kanagawa, Chiba and Saitama.
The jolts and fires caused by the quake could destroy 610,000 buildings, leaving 23,000 people dead, 123,000 injured, and 58,000 waiting to be rescued.
Source: NHK
