OSAKA -- When the Great Hanshin Earthquake struck in January 1995, it sent shivers down the spines of many living in old wooden homes nationwide because most of the 6,432 people killed in the temblor were found in similar structures, which had collapsed. Public interest in whether such houses and buildings could withstand strong quakes soared, and the central and local governments subsidized tests on the structural strength of houses and provided low-interest loans for renovation work.
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| People sift through the rubble of a house in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, destroyed in the January 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake. |
However, many residents of such old houses remain hesitant to renovate, citing the huge cost. It is estimated that 14 million houses nationwide do not live up to the government's quake tolerance standards, updated in 1981.