"The years pass, but nothing manages to erase the memories of this tragedy"
It was January 17, 1995 at 5:46: an earthquake of magnitude 7.2 struck the Kobe region of Japan, killing more than 6,400 dead and nearly 40,000 wounded.
Twenty years later, commemorations were held this Saturday in memory of the victims.
"For me, tells an old inhabitant of Kobe, time stopped that day. That was 20 years ago, but since this event, it's as if my life had stopped. The years pass, but nothing manages to erase the memories of this tragedy. "
The authorities have deliberately kept intact some vestiges of this earthquake, in a memory sake.
The archipelago lies on an area of intense seismic activity. Thousands of tremors are felt each year. And the population regularly attends prevention exercises.
