TOKYO, April 20 (Reuters) – A magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck off northeastern Japan on Monday, prompting authorities to urge residents to stay away from coastal areas where tsunamis of up to 3 meters (9.84 feet) are expected.
According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the epicenter was in the Pacific Ocean at a depth of 10 kilometers. Officials said the biggest waves were expected in Iwate, Aomori and Hokkaido prefectures.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told reporters that the government had set up an emergency response headquarters and called on people in the affected areas to evacuate to safe locations.
NHK showed a ship leaving Hokkaido’s Hachinohe Port in anticipation of waves and issued a warning of “Tsunami!”. Evacuate! ‘ flashed across the screen.
Kyodo News reported that bullet train services in Aomori Prefecture, on the northern tip of Japan’s main island of Honshu, were suspended due to the shaking.
This earthquake was observed as an “upper 5” on Japan’s seismic intensity scale, and was so strong that it made it difficult for people to move. There are many cases where unreinforced concrete block walls collapse.
Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world, with shaking occurring at least every five minutes. Japan is located in the Pacific Ring of Fire, a region of volcanoes and ocean trenches that surrounds part of the Pacific Basin, and accounts for about 20% of the world’s earthquakes of magnitude 6.0 or higher.
There are currently no operating nuclear power plants in Hokkaido and the Tohoku region, but Hokkaido Electric Power Company 9509.T and Tohoku Electric Power Company 9506.T have shut down several nuclear power plants. Tohoku Electric Power Co. announced that it is investigating the effects of the earthquake and tsunami on its Onagawa nuclear power plant.
(Reporting: Tokyo Newsroom; Writing: Changran Kim, John Geddy; Editing: Kate Mayberry)
