Kobe

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Deep-water port on Osaka Bay in Hyogo prefecture, southern Honshu island, Japan; population (2000) 1,494,000. It was a treaty port between 1868 and 1899, for foreigners exempt from Japanese law. Port Island, an artificial island of 5 sq km/3 sq mi in Kobe harbour, was created in 1960–68 from the rock of nearby mountains. It was one of the world's largest construction projects, and is now a residential and recreation area with a luxury hotel, amusement park, and conference centres. It is linked to the city by a driverless, computerized monorail. Kobe and the neighbouring cities of Osaka and Kyoto make up the Keihanshin Industrial Zone, which is the second-largest conurbation in Japan, after the Yokohama-Tokyo metropolitan area.

An earthquake registering 7.2 on the Richter scale hit Kobe in January 1995, causing widespread devastation and leaving more than 5,372 people dead, nearly 27,000 injured, and over 45,000 homes destroyed. Many of the buildings destroyed in the earthquake contained asbestos, used in Japanese buildings until 1965. The levels of asbestos fibres in the air were four times the national average during the demolition of damaged buildings.

Known as ‘white sun in blue sky’, the flag of Chinese revolutionary leader Sun Zhong Shan appears in the canton. The rays of the sun represent 12 traditional Chinese hours (each equalling two hours) symbolizing progress. Red is a traditional Chinese colour. Effective date: 8 October 1928. >>