Magnitude 9.0 earthquake. More than 22,000 dead. Damage price tag of $235 billion.

The 2011 Tohoku Earthquake (also referred to as the Great East Japanese Earthquake) that occurred on March 11, 2011 and the tsunami that followed devastated much of Japan, and it was the most expensive natural disaster in history.

Out of the tremendous devastation that followed, however, many important lessons were learned. We’ve highlighted some of the most important ones here so you can be armed with knowledge that will help you survive if a quake hits your region.

1. Early warning system

   Japan has arguably the world’s most advanced early warning system in the world for earthquakes and tsunamis. As soon as the first waves of the Japanese earthquake occurred and its strength was understood, tens of millions of Japanese residents received an alert via text message, e-mail or on television, to name just a few of the ways it was delivered.
   

   While the alert’s impact ranged greatly depending on how far victims were from the epicenter of the earthquake, even just a few seconds was enough time for many drivers to get off of bridges, for students to huddle under their desks and for all trains to automatically stop running.
   Early warning signals save lives. As more technology users around the world subscribe to such systems or have them publicly available during the next massive quake, fewer lives will be lost.

2. Earthquakes not just a pacific problem

   While California and Japan often get much of the press related to earthquakes and tsunamis, earthquakes have struck the rest of the United States numerous times since the country’s founding—and could again at any time. Damaging earthquakes have occurred in areas east of the Mississippi River in areas as diverse as Washington, D.C.,Tampa, Fla., and Memphis, Tenn.
   Perhaps most frightening thing about these EastCoast quakes is the deadliest of them—the 1886 Charleston Earthquake—occurred where no tremor had ever been felt before and claimed close to 100 lives.

Nuclear strength

The Fukushima nuclear disaster was a devastating reminder about the power of earthquakes—as well as the damage that a nuclear meltdown can cause in just a matter of minutes. In response to the tragedy, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) created a list of recommendations for securing our nuclear facilities using a three-tiered, prioritized schedule. Some of the agency’s recommendations were as follows:

TIER 1 To be started immediately:

• Seismic and flood hazard reevaluations
• Station blackout regulatory actions
• Spent fuel pool instrumentation
• Stronger emergency operating procedures and severe accident management guidelines

TIER 2 To be initiated when further information is available:

• Spent fuel pool makeup capability
• Emergency preparedness regulatory actions
• Reevaluation of other external hazards (tornadoes, hurricanes, drought, etc.)

TIER 3 To be addressed after tiers 1 and 2 are completed:

• Ten-year confirmation of seismic and flooding hazards
• Potential enhancements to the capability to prevent or mitigate seismically-induced fires and floods
• Emergency response data system capability
• Emergency preparedness topics for decision-making, radiation monitoring and public education
• Pre-staging of

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