6,434 people mainly in Kobe City died from the building collapses and big fires caused by the Great Hanshin Earthquake in 1995.

This big earthquake was caused by the Nojima Active Fault running nearby Kobe City, one of the big cities in Japan.  The epicenter was deep under the Akashi Strait between upper Awaji Island and Kobe City, so the seismic intensity of Japan reached 7, the greatest, in upper Awaji Island and the coastal area of Kobe City.  Even strong ferroconcrete buildings collapsed one after another.  When the quake occurred, the Nojima Active Fault was suddenly exposed as long as 150 meters on the ground surface of upper Awaji Island, the closest land from the epicenter deep under the sea.  This active fault, 10 kilometers long, caused a 1.2-meter horizontal  displacement and, at the same time, a 1-meter vertical displacement.  The Hokudan Earthquake Memorial Park was built to commemorate the Great Hanshin Earthquake.  The Nojima Active Fault on the ground surface and damaged buildings are well preserved and displayed exactly as they were at that time. 

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