Not long now...

A megaquake registering magnitude 8-9 is said to have a 70-80% chance of happening along the Nankai Trough, a submarine trench off Japan's Pacific coast, within 30 years. The government's Central Disaster Management Council and other institutions announced the estimated damage of a top-class Nankai Trough earthquake registering magnitude 9.1 in 2012. According to their estimation, the town of Kuroshio and the city of Tosashimizu in Kochi Prefecture will be slammed with waves measuring up to 34 meters in height, while waves measuring between 20-30 meters will strike along the Pacific coast from the Tokai to the Shikoku region. Researchers say a massive Nankai Trough quake would leave 231,000 people dead in a worst-case scenario.