Japan is battling a surge of seismic activity and viral doomsday rumors as tremors continue to rattle its southern islands.
At a Glance
- Over 1,000 tremors have struck the Kagoshima region in two weeks.
- A 5.5-magnitude quake hit near Kyushu, prompting evacuations.
- Viral manga predictions are fueling quake hysteria.
- Tourism from Hong Kong dropped 11% amid growing panic.
- Experts stress that earthquake prediction is scientifically impossible.
Fiction Fuels Fear
Authorities in Japan are urging calm after a wave of recent tremors coincided with viral panic over predictions from a decades-old manga. The Japanese Meteorological Agency (JMA) reported more than 1,000 small earthquakes in the Kagoshima region, triggering precautionary evacuations from remote islands near Kyushu.
What amplified the concern wasn’t just the tremors—but the circulation of alleged “predictions” from The Future I Saw, a manga by Ryo Tatsuki. Social media users claim the comic foresaw a massive quake this July, despite the author stating she is “not a prophet”. Government officials were forced to respond publicly, assuring citizens that such claims are fiction, not forecasts.
Watch a report: Viral Quake Doomsday Rumors Spook Tourists to Japan
https://www.reuters.com/video/watch/idRW693903072025RP1/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Economic Aftershocks
The ripple effects are already visible in Japan’s tourism sector. Despite record-setting overall arrivals in April, a sharp 11% drop in tourists from Hong Kong in May was attributed directly to quake-related anxiety. The downturn comes even as Japan remains one of the most earthquake-prepared nations on Earth, equipped with strict building codes and real-time warning systems.
Seismologists such as JMA director Ayataka Ebita reiterated that precise earthquake prediction remains beyond current scientific capability. He warned that public safety depends on preparedness, not panic.
Dismissed But Not Ignored
Japan accounts for approximately 20% of the world’s magnitude 6+ quakes each year, making vigilance essential. The recent tremors, though moderate, come amid elevated public sensitivity following disasters like the 2011 Tōhoku quake and tsunami. However, authorities continue to emphasize that proactive planning, not prophecy, is the right defense.
In the face of fictional fears, Japan’s civil authorities are reaffirming science over superstition—hoping to quell the hysteria before paranoia causes more harm than the quakes themselves.
