In Rattling Japan Islands, 'It's Very Scary to Even Fall Asleep'

Upward of 600 people have made their home in Japan's Tokara Islands, a 12-island archipelago with seven inhabited islands between Japan's mainland and the island of Okinawa. Over the past couple of weeks, however, the chain has been hit by "more earthquakes than it has people," per the New York Times, which reports on the hundreds of temblors that have registered at least a 1.5 on the Japan Meteorological Agency's seismic intensity scale. One quake on Wednesday even drew a 5.6 reading, according to the US Geological Society. Scientists aren't sure when the shaking will stop.

• Numbers: The JMA says it has logged 870 tremors since June 21. NDTV puts that figure at more than 900 over the past two weeks.
• Cause: It's not entirely clear why there's been such an uptick in this already earthquake-prone region—Japan accounts for nearly one-fifth of the world's tremors—but the Times notes that tiny quakes often pop up when a new volcanic island forms, and just two years ago, that's exactly what happened near Iwo Jima.

• No shut-eye: Locals say all the tectonic tomfoolery has them missing out on precious slumber. "It feels like it's always shaking," one resident tells the broadcaster MBC, via NDTV. "It's very scary to even fall asleep." Another mulls evacuating their kids, adding, "It's not clear when all this will end."
• Warning: The JMA says residents of the islands don't have to fear tsunamis as of now, but the agency is cautioning against falling rocks and landslides.
• Upcoming: Per the London Times, a government panel in January said that there's a 75% chance or greater that a "megaquake" capable of killing nearly 300,000 people will take place along the Nankai Trough in the Pacific over the next three decades. In that worst-case scenario, estimated damages would near $2 trillion, according to the panel.