The Rise Of Australasia

Chapter 784 - 585: The Great Tokyo Earthquake_1

The successful opening of the National Film City was not the greatest news for Arthur. A month later, on September 1, 1923, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.9 struck the Island Nation, resulting in the deaths of over 100,000 people, including those in Tokyo, Kanagawa, Chiba, Shizuoka, and Yamanashi, and left more than two million people homeless.

Such a massive earthquake naturally captured the attention of the world.

In order to demonstrate the responsibilities and commitments of a Power, Australasia also sent several tons of Grain and certain emergency medical supplies to the Island Nation.

It wasn’t just Australasia – practically every country in the world expressed their concern and support. After all, no matter the relationship, maintaining appearances was important.

But behind the scenes, the Powers’ Grain shipments to the Island Nation were being expedited. These were not for aid – the prices of these Grains were much higher than usual, as among the Powers, none were saints; naturally, none would choose to help the Island Nation without gain.

To give an example with Australasia, although they provided less than five tons of Grain for free, they sold tens of thousands of tons of Grain at prices that were several times the norm.

Besides Grain, the prices of medical supplies, tents, and living water all soared in the Disaster Area.

Putting aside the enormous Economic loss the earthquake brought to the Island Nation, the profits made by various countries from the nation’s calamity amounted to at least tens of millions of pounds.

In light of these comparisons, what did it mean to send the Island Nation aid worth a few thousand or tens of thousands of pounds in supplies?

For the Islander government, Powers taking advantage of the situation to double the price of Grain was not the main issue. If they could not guarantee the supply of Grain and supplies in the Disaster Area, they would face an even more serious outbreak of cholera.

This was the lesson the Island Nation had learned from various earthquakes and tsunamis; such high-mortality events often lead to the emergence of epidemics.

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Even in the time to come, how to recover the post-disaster economy and industry would be a key topic for the Island Nation, and Islanders’ activity in foreign affairs would also significantly diminish.

Particularly after the earthquake, the Island Nation borrowed over 20 billion yen in foreign debt from the United States’ civilian and government sectors, which was a huge burden on the Island Nation’s economy.

Whether the Island Nation’s Finance could withstand such a large Army and Navy naval size was questionable, let alone allowing for recovery of industry and economy. This posed a difficult problem for the new Prime Minister Gonbei Yamamoto.

On September 7, one week after the event, the Island Nation’s earthquake damage assessment was finally released.

For the Island Nation, the earthquake was not just a hardship, but a series of disasters that included the earthquake, fires, and epidemics.

According to information released by the Island Nation, just the damage to houses and facilities amounted to 470,000 units.

Coupled with the damage to roads and Industrial Areas, even if the Island Nation spent a significant amount to rehabilitate, it would take two or three years to return to pre-disaster conditions.

But that wasn’t all. For various reasons, the damage this time was more severe than in the country’s history, with confirmed death tolls exceeding 150,000 people and a considerable number of regions still suffering from cholera and tsunamis, with the death count still rising.

It must be acknowledged that the Island Nation’s cultural output in Asia has been quite successful.

In this earthquake, many Asian countries extended a helping hand, sending their medical and relief teams.