Like Nostradamus from the 16th century, a blind, Bulgarian mystic known as “Baba Vanga” claimed to have psychic abilities to predict the future. Among her supposed prophecies, Baba Vanga was reported to have foretold everything from WWII, to Princess Diana’s death, to the 9/11 attacks.
Now, a new mystic being dubbed as “Japanese Baba Vanga” – a manga artist by the name of Ryo Tatsuki – is said to have foreseen future tragedies via her graphic novel, The Future I saw, which include an earthquake and resulting tsunami of catastrophic proportions scheduled to hit Japan and surrounding regions on July 5th, 2025.
As a result, flight reservations to the area have reportedly plummeted due to superstitious travelers.
“The cover of the original, published in 1999, refers to a ‘great disaster’ occurring in March 2011 – the date Japan experienced a deadly earthquake and tsunami,” according to The Guardian. “In a new edition containing additional material that was published in 2021, Tatsuki said the next major disaster would occur on 5 July 2025. Her claim has fueled sensationalist social media posts warning people to stay away from Japan.”
On March 11th, 2011, an earthquake and subsequent tsunami rocked Japan, and led to the Fukushima nuclear disaster – an event that Tatsuki supposedly predicted in her graphic novel.
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The updated version of the graphic novel, now, shows a similar, incoming disaster on July 5th, 2025. And that’s had an impact on travel trends for that timeframe to Japan.
“We expected around 80% of the seats to be taken, but actual reservations came to only 40%,” said Hiroki Ito, the general manager of Greater Bay Airlines’ Japan office, via The Guardian.
Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone regions in the world. It sits right in the deadly “ring of fire.” And while seismologists contend that more quakes – and subsequent tsunamis – are certain for the region, there is no way to know exactly when they will hit.
And even Tatsuki has issued concerns over people taking her predictions too seriously. “It’s important not to be unnecessarily influenced,” she said, “and to listen to the opinions of experts.”
But still, she allegedly predicted the last one. Would you cancel your ticket?
Related: 20 Years Later: Remembering the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami (Photos)