Case | HBS Case Collection | 2013 (Revised from original 2012 version)

The Great East Japan Earthquake (A)

by Hirotaka Takeuchi and Victor Stone

Abstract

At 2:46pm on March 11th, 2011, a 9.0M earthquake shook the Tohoku (Northeastern) region of Japan. The epicenter of the earthquake was in the coastal waters of Tohoku and reverberations from the quake triggered a tsunami that ravaged the coastal shores of Eastern Japan. The tsunami was the greatest recorded wave in history, with its highest peak at 38.9m and waves higher than 10m hitting 530km of coastal Japan.

Keywords: Japan; Earthquake; Tohoku; Tsunami; Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Facility; Natural Disasters; Japan;

Citation:

Takeuchi, Hirotaka, and Victor Stone. "The Great East Japan Earthquake (A)." Harvard Business School Case 712-480, January 2013. (Revised from original April 2012 version.)