Tokyo residents are being told to prepare for X Day. That’s the day when a potential massive earthquake could strike the city.

Those concerns, combined with fears of a missile attack from North Korea, are leading some there to get ready to bunker down.

It may be the home of Zen, but Japan is one of the most natural disaster-prone places on the planet.

Situated on the boundaries of four tectonic plates and on the Western ridge of the ‘ring of fire’, Japan is one of the most tectonically active places on earth. Its position, topography and climate makes the country particularly vulnerable to earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons and volcanic eruptions.

While earthquakes are common in Japan, with around 1,500 every year, experts have been predicting that Japan is due for a mega earthquake. Authorities say there’s a 70 per cent chance greater Tokyo will be struck by a 7.3 magnitude earthquake by 2050 - a potential disaster they have termed X Day.

This concern, coupled with fears of an increasing threat of a missile attack from North Korea, has contributed to Japan being a booming market in the $200 billion global disaster preparedness industry. ...continue reading