Abstract
The stricken district where the most severe shock was felt from the earthquake on the first day of September is shown in Fig. 1.
In Tokio and Yokohama, not only the houses were crumbled to the ground by the tremendous shock but were literally wiped out by the conflagration that spread immediately after the quake over two-thirds of Tokio and practically all of Yokohama. The appalling catastrophe which we had encountered could seldom be found in our long history, and, as a result thereof more than 300, 000 houses were burnt in Tokio and more than 70, 000 houses in Yokohama, more over about 100, 000 of human lives were lost.
The electric rower systems that supply the two cities are numerous as shown in Fig. 1; but these were all damaged more or less and it resulted in a complete interruption of service for two days in Tokio. However. after utmost efforts, electricity was first supplied to the reserve pumping plant of Tokio Municipal Water Works and to the wireless stations, then to the street lights. From the fifth day house lighting and small motor circuits were gradually put into service again, until the tenth day when the power supply in the district unaffected by the fire was almost restored. In Yokohama, from the eighth day power was sent into some of the unaffected districts: on the eighteenth the supply to these districts was nearly recovered.-Later, barracks were built rapidly in the devastated area and to-day, three months after the disaster, the supply of electrical power came up to about 70% of that consumed before the quake.
The system that suffered most damage is that of the hydro-electric plants of Hakone district (No. 1 and No. 2) where the banks of the reservoirs burst open, the water channel was demolished, the walls of the structures were cracked or tumbled down. In this district, even to-day, three months later, but few of the plants have been repaired. In the Katsuragawa system, (No. 4 in Fig. 1) open channels, reservoirs and brick structures that were located on a layer of loose earth were cracked, but those channels and reservoirs constructed on solid earth and buildings reinforced with steel frames were unaffected. In these plants, although the machines were all shut down at the time, 70% of the capacity is now being generated. All the other systems escaped from damage.
The transmission lines of Hakone system (No. 1 and No. 2) suffered heavy damage; the poles and towers were either leaning over or demolished. The 150, 000 volt transinission line of Keihin Denryoku, (No. 4) in spite of passing partly through the region affected by the severe earthquake, suffered no damage of consequence except that only two towers were toppled down, and consequently the line was restored on the thirteenth of September. In Katsuragawa, Gumma, Kinugawa, Inawashiro and Shin-etsu systems, (Nos. 3, 6, 7, 8 & 9 respectively in Fig. 1.) the transmission lines were safe and were able to transmit the usual power at once; the substations built of brick reinforced with steel frames or of reinforced concrete were safe, while those built of brick only were ruined.
As the transformers are commonly provided with castors for transportation, a number of them tore loose from their settings and broke the oil and water pipes in consequence. From this we have learned that such apparatus should have been fixed so as to prevent moving by earthshaking. Of lightning arresters both the aluminum cell and oxide film types were knocked over. As most of the storage batteries installed in the stations were smashed, the operation of oil circuit breakers had to depent upon the motor-generator at all. Of underground cables, where the method of direct laying in the ground was used, they were found to be without injury; however, owing to the burning down of bridges many of the cables were interrupted at those portions. Of those layd in ducts in loose earth, the ducts and manholes suffered some open cleavage.
