The 2011 tsunami in Japan was an apocalyptic event for several parts of the country. Even though some of these areas had walls to protect against tsunamis, this tsunami easily overtopped them (as seen here around the 6 minute point). The rushing water in multiple locations across Japan caused unprecedented damage and over 15,000 deaths. This video captures one small part of the tragedy:

Same tsunami hitting another Japanese city:

What has happened here is that an earthquake off the coast of Japan has pushed a massive tectonic plate upward by several feet. All of the water above the plate – many cubic miles of water – has been pushe up as well, and the excess spreads out in all directions. Parts of the excess are what we see here.

The problem for any human decision-makers is that tsunamis are infrequent and unpredictable events, and it is incredibly expensive (and ugly) to build tall concreate walls that may not be used for decades . Unfortunately, short of moving the city out of harm’s way, there is no alternative to expensive, ugly walls for tsunami-prone areas.

“The Doomsday Book” by Marshall Brain lays out this scenario in amazing detail and offers solutions to prevent this doomsday scenario from unfolding. You can order the book today on Amazon and other retailers.