A A strong earthquake shook central Japan this Monday, January 1st.prompting warnings for residents to leave parts of the West Coast, leaving thousands of homes without power and disrupting air and rail links to the affected region.

Movement, p. preliminary magnitude 7.6.caused waves of about 1 meter high in parts of the Sea of ​​Japan coast, with larger waves expected, the public broadcaster said. NHC.

The Japan Meteorological Agency published Tsunami warnings for the coastal prefectures of Ishikawa, Niigata and ToyamaIt was the first major warning since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami hit northeastern Japan.

A major tsunami warning means there is a possibility waves over 3 meters.

Russia warns of tsunami in the Far Eastern cities of Vladivostok and Nakhodka. South Korea and North Korea also issued their own warnings.

Some houses were destroyed and army units were sent to assistance in rescue operationsHayashi Yoshimasa, a senior government official, told reporters, adding that authorities were still assessing the extent of the damage.

According to Toshihiro Shimoyama, head of the Japan Meteorological Agency, in the coming days stronger tremors may occur in this areawhere seismic activity remained hidden for more than three years.

Speaking to the press shortly after the move, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also warned residents to prepare for further disasters.

“Residents should be alert to the possibility of further aftershocks, and I urge residents in areas where a tsunami is expected to evacuate as soon as possible,” Kishida said.

石川県能登地方の最大震度7の地震発生を受け、直ちに官邸対策室を立ち上げ、そして先ほど特定災害対策本部を設置しました。
、災害応急対策に総力を挙げています。
命を守る行動を最優先に取ってください。

— 岸田文雄 (@kishida230) January 1, 2024

“Run!”A bright yellow warning flashed on television screens, urging residents of certain areas of the coast to leave their homes immediately.

Footage broadcast by local media showed a collapsed building amid a plume of dust in the coastal city of Suzu and a huge crack in a road in Wajima, where panicked parents grabbed their children. The quake also shook buildings in the capital Tokyo, about 500 kilometers from Wajima on the opposite coast.

More than 36,000 homes were without power in Ishikawa and Toyama prefectures, according to Hokuriku Electric Power. 9505.T

High-speed rail service to Ishikawa was suspended, and telecom operators Softbank 9434.T and KDDI 9433.T reported disruptions to telephone and internet service in Ishikawa and Niigata, according to their websites.

Japan Airlines ANA 9202.T returned planes heading to Toyama and Ishikawa airports, while Japan Airlines 9201.T canceled most of its flights to the Niigata and Ishikawa regions, and authorities said it was closing one flight from Ishikawa airports.

NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

This was stated by the Japan Nuclear Regulatory Authority. no violations confirmed at nuclear power plants along the Sea of ​​Japan, including five active reactors at the Kansai Electric Power 9503.T Ohi and Takahama power plants in Fukui Prefecture.

The Shika Hokuriku nuclear plant in Ishikawa, the nuclear power plant closest to the quake’s epicenter, had already shut down two of its reactors ahead of the move for regular inspections and had not seen any effects from the quake, the agency said.

The 2011 earthquake and tsunami killed nearly 20,000 people. and the destroyed cities and nuclear power plants in Fukushima.

Another earthquake, known as the Great Hanshin Earthquake, rocked western Japan in 1995, killing more than 6,000 people, mostly in the city of Kobe.

Monday’s earthquake occurred during the January 1 holiday, when millions of Japanese traditionally visit temples to ring in the New Year.

In Kanazawa, a popular tourist spot in Ishikawa, photographs showed the remains of a collapsed torii gate scattered at the entrance to a shrine, as worshipers looked on with dismay.

Kanazawa resident Ayako Daikai said she, her husband and two children evacuated to a nearby elementary school shortly after the earthquake. The classrooms, staircases, corridors and gymnasium were filled with evacuees.

“I also survived the Great Hanshin Earthquake, so I thought the safest thing to do would be to evacuate“She told Reuters when contacted by phone.

“We haven’t decided when we will return home.”

Reuters