Hundreds of thousands dead after Japanese earthquake
Japan, 5 September 1923 - The Irish Free State Minister for Foreign Affairs has issued a message expressing the ‘profound sympathy’ to the Government and people of Japan following a devastating earthquake that took place on September 1st and has left as many as 500,000 casualties.
A vast area of central Japan has been impacted with two large cities, Tokyo and Yokohama, totally destroyed.
The situation in both locations has been described by one local official as being ‘like hell.’ A statement issued by the Japanese Consul in Liverpool relays news from a Tokyo cable. It claims that ‘Yokohama, Kamakura and Yokosuka naval base are totally destroyed. Eight districts out of fifteen in Tokio (sic) are partially destroyed. Fires are not yet under control. Island of Koshimo submerged.’
An earlier communication, issued from the press Association in Osaka suggests that a series of tragic events were triggered by a typhoon, which broke over Tokyo, only to be followed by earthquake shocks, which caused buildings (an estimated 350,000 houses are believed to have been destroyed in Tokyo) and railway bridges to collapse and fires to erupt. A tidal wave also struck the coast at Yokohama where the cost of the damage is expected to run into the hundreds of millions of yen.
The aftermath of the earthquakes has witnessed scenes of chaos and devastation. Homelessness and food shortages are widespread and there have been reports of extensive street rioting with many ethnic Koreans being targeted and killed.
The United States president, Mr. Calvin Coolidge, has issued instructions to the U.S. navy and army to do everything possible to assist Japan. He has also issued a proclamation appealing to the American people to contribute to the Japanese relief effort. The American Red Cross has also ordered its representatives in China and the Philippines to rush immediately to the aid of Japan.
Pathé reportage on the devastating Japanese earthquakes, 1923
[Editor's note: This is an article from Century Ireland, a fortnightly online newspaper, written from the perspective of a journalist 100 years ago, based on news reports of the time.]
