TOKYO: On Saturday (Aug 10), fear of a potential “megaquake” spiked demand for disaster kits and everyday essentials, so Japanese authorities advised people not to hoard.
The weather service said in its first such advisory that a massive earthquake was more likely following Thursday’s 7.1-magnitude shockwave in the country’s south, which injured 14 people.
A sign apologising to customers for shortages of specific products due to “quake-related media reports” was posted at a Tokyo supermarket on Saturday.
The sign stated that “potential sales restrictions are on the way” and that “unstable” procurement was the reason why bottled water was already being rationed.
On Saturday morning, the top three most sought-after items on the website of Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten were bottled water, portable toilets, and preserved food.
Local media reports claimed that similar disaster-related supplies were in high demand at some retailers along the Pacific coastline. The warning relates to the Pacific Ocean’s Nankai Trough, a “subduction zone” between two tectonic plates that has previously experienced powerful earthquakes.
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