Many people are worried and have cancelled their trip plans after Japanese manga artist Ryo Tatsuki, popularly known as the "New Baba Vanga," prophesied that a huge tsunami would strike Japan in July 2025. Her manga, "The Future I Saw," predicts a catastrophic event on July 5, 2025, which some people believe to be an earthquake or tsunami brought on by an underwater division between Japan and the Philippines, reported The Guardian. Even though Tatsuki's forecasts are not supported by science, they have gained respect because she was right about the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident and the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan, which killed over 18,000 people.
Due to East Asian travellers' concerns about the looming calamity, Tatsuki's forecasts have caused an 83% decrease in reservations for flights to Japan. Average Hong Kong reservations are down 50% year over year, with reservations falling by as much as 83% between late June and early July, according to Bloomberg Intelligence. The dreadful forecast caused many visitors to postpone or cancel their current summer reservations, according to a Hong Kong travel operator, which reported a 50% decrease in reservations to Japan over the April–May spring break.
Ryo Tatsuki's claims are completely irrational and devoid of any scientific foundation, according to Japanese officials, who have warned the public to ignore them. If the dissemination of unfounded rumours on social media had an impact on tourism, it would be a serious issue. Since the Japanese are not escaping overseas, there is no need to be concerned. The governor of Miyagi prefecture, Yoshihiro Murai, expressed his hope that people would disregard the rumours and come to visit.
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Apart from Tatsuki's forecasts, Japanese authorities have been worried about the possibility of earthquakes. In April, a government task team highlighted Japan's susceptibility to seismic activity by warning that a large earthquake off its Pacific coast might kill up to 298,000 people.
Although Japan is vulnerable to earthquakes due to its placement on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," experts stress that existing scientific knowledge makes it difficult to forecast the exact time and location of earthquakes.
Additionally, Ryo Tatsuki has issued a warning against taking her predictions too seriously, urging people to weigh professional judgment and avoid being unduly swayed by them.