Six Months: Counting the Cost - Wall Street Journal (blog)

The March 11 disasters have taken a heavy toll on Japan, in every conceivable way. In other posts, JRT looks at the impact on survivors’ lives and challenges for the future. Below is an update on the aftermath of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis as seen in the simplest of measures – numbers.

ReutersA survivor walks through debris caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, in Rikuzentakata, Iwate prefecture on March 18.

Dead, Missing, Homeless:

19,902 – number of people confirmed dead or missing from the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, as of Sept. 9, according to the National Police Agency.

82,945 – total number of evacuees living in temporary homes, evacuation centers and makeshift housing such as hotels or staying with relatives and friends, as of Aug. 25, according to the Cabinet Office.

6,819 – the number of victims still living in evacuation centers, such as schools that were converted into shelters shortly after the disasters, as of Aug. 25, according to the Cabinet Office.

Movement:

626 – the number of earthquakes in Japan measuring magnitude 5.0 or higher between March 11 and Aug. 31, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. In the same period a year earlier, the number was 61.

5.8 meters – the distance that the observation point Oshika in Ishiniomaki, Miyagi prefecture, has shifted east since the earthquake as of the end of July, according to the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan. Prior to the earthquake, the Japanese archipelago crawled westward a few centimeters a year.

5 – number of consecutive months the Osaka region, which encompasses Kyoto, Hyogo and Nara prefectures, recorded a net population influx, the longest monthly growth trend recorded since 1970 when the western city hosted the world exposition. Since March, all told roughly 10,000 more people moved into the area than left it as of the end of July, according to the Internal Affairs Ministry.

Nuclear Effect:

23 – number of times the government ordered bans on distribution of certain produce from select prefectures due to radiation contamination as of Sept. 10, according to the Ministry of Health.

26 – the number of different types of food items, including vegetables, fish and beef, at various points banned from distribution due to radioactive contamination, as named in orders released by the Ministry of Health as of Sept. 10.

380 tons – the amount of beef from cattle suspected of being fed rice straw with high concentrations of radioactive cesium the government purchased, according to the Nikkei business daily.

Financial Cost:

Y16.9 trillion – estimated cost of damage from the natural disasters, about twice the amount from the 1995 Kobe earthquake, according to the Cabinet Office.

Y351.9 billion – amount allocated in the supplemental budget to clear the debris. Amount of debris in the three worst-hit prefectures – 21.8 trillion tons.

Y120,000 – maximum monthly compensation Tokyo Power Electric Co. is to pay each evacuee between March and August for the anguish they suffered because they had to flee from their homes.

Y112.2 billion – total compensation Tepco has paid on a provisional basis to evacuees, farmers, companies and others affected by the accident as of Aug. 30.

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