The Japanese government on July 1 approved significant upgrades to the plan to safeguard the public in the event of a major earthquake off southern Japan and to respond in the event that disaster does strike.

The move comes amid an unprecedented swarm of quakes hitting the Tokara Islands.

Dozens of residents of the remote island chain, half-way between Japan's most southerly main island of Kyushu and Okinawa Prefecture, have been evacuated to the mainland after enduring more than 1,700 tremors since June 21.

The islands were hit by 60 quakes on Monday alone, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency, with Akusekijima island shaken by multiple tremors of magnitude 5.

Experts say earthquake swarms have been recorded in the area before, but never of such magnitude or for such an extended period of time.

Authorities have instructed residents who have chosen to remain on the islands to be prepared for further tremors, although they have gone to great lengths to emphasize that the ongoing seismic activity in the Tokara islands is not a precursor to the much-feared Nankai Trough earthquake.

They agree, however, that disaster is unavoidable and edging closer.

Japan is one of the world's most seismically active countries. The archipelago, home to around 125 million people, sits on top of four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the

© Deutsche Welle