New Delhi: Japanese Manga artist Ryo Tatsuki, also known as the Japanese ‘Baba Vanga’, has predicted a ‘real catastrophe’ in July 2025. Ryo’s predictions have been on point, correctly predicting the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in northern Japan’s Tohoku region.
According to an updated version of her 1999 manga comic, she talks of a crack that will open up between Japan and the Philippines in July 2025. The tremors from this will cause a tsunami ‘three times taller’ than the March 2011 earthquake.
Travellers from mainland China and Hong Kong are particularly scared, accounting for a majority of the tourists to Japan. Viral social media discussions have further fueled the scare, with tourists from Thailand and Vietnam considering cancelling their visits to Japan as well.
Hotels in Tokyo and Kyoto are seeing a 35% drop in summer travel inquiries, even as some travel agencies are witnessing a 50% rise in cancellations.
Japan’s location on the Ring of Fire makes it highly vulnerable to natural disasters, and the Japanese government has always created elaborate plans to deal with such disasters. Though such precautionary behaviour is usually reserved for weather advisories or government warnings, a cocktail of viral online discussions, ingrained trust in prophecies and Japan’s vulnerable weather have resulted in massive losses to Japan’s tourism industry.
