Fresh quake triggers tsunami warning in Japan

Tokyo (CNN) — A powerful earthquake struck Japan on Thursday, triggering a tsunami warning for one prefecture and advisories in other prefectures.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said the quake was a magnitude of 7.4. The U.S. Geological Survey said it was 7.1.

There were no reports of casualties from anywhere in the earthquake zone, the National Police Agency said.

Workers evacuated the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant following the quake, the Tokyo Electric Power Company said. Tokyo Electric said it has communication with the plant and the power is still on there. There were no immediate reports of damage, it said.

The quake’s epicenter was off the coast of Miyagi in northeastern Japan, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

Public broadcaster NHK reported a tsunami warning for Miyagi prefecture, saying people in that area should evacuate away from the shore to a safe place.

NHK also reported tsunami advisories for the Pacific coast of Aomori Prefecture, and for the Iwate, Fukushima, and Ibaraki Prefectures.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said based on all available data, “a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected and there is not a tsunami threat to Hawaii.”

The quake was centered 207 miles (333 kilometers) from Tokyo, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was centered 41 miles (66 kilometers) from Sendai — one of the areas worst hit by last month’s 9.0-magnitude quake — and 73 miles (118 kilometers) from Fukushima, where a crisis has been under way at the nuclear plant since last month’s tsunami.

Public broadcaster NHK reported a tsunami warning for Miyagi prefecture, saying people in that area should evacuate away from the shore to a safe place.

NHK also reported tsunami advisories for the Pacific coast of Aomori Prefecture, and for the Iwate, Fukushima, and Ibaraki Prefectures.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said based on all available data, “a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected and there is not a tsunami threat to Hawaii.”

The quake was centered 207 miles (333 kilometers) from Tokyo, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

It was 15.9 miles (25.6 kilometers) deep, the agency reported.

It took place shortly after 11:30 p.m. local time (10:30 a.m. ET).

Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/04/07/japan.quake/index.html?hpt=T2

Japan: Tsunami warning lifted after 7.1 earthquake

A tsunami warning issued for north-eastern Japan after an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 has now been lifted, Japanese NHK TV says.

Workers at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant damaged in last month’s quake and tsunami were evacuated.

However, officials at the plant said there was no detectable effect there or at other nuclear plants in the region.

The Japanese authorities ordered a general evacuation from the warning zone.

“Based on all available data, a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected,” the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said on its website.

But it warned: “Earthquakes of this size sometimes generate local tsunamis that can be destructive along coasts located within 100km of the earthquake epicentre.”

There was no threat to Hawaii, it added.

Aftershocks

The quake struck at 2332 local time (1432 GMT) on Thursday, 118km (78 miles) north of Fukushima, 40km offshore.

First reports said it had a magnitude of 7.4 but that has now been revised downwards to 7.1, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

It struck at a depth of 49km. Last month’s earthquake had a magnitude of 9.0 and struck at 32km deep.

USGS geophysicist Paul Caruso said Thursday’s quake struck at about the same location and depth as the 11 March quake, the AP news agency reported.

Efforts to cool down three of the reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant are continuing in a stable manner, reports NHK.

The quake was strong enough to shake buildings in Tokyo, 265km to the south.

“The earthquake was moving in a up and down motion,” Miri Gono in Tokyo told the BBC by email. It started off with small shakes, then shook bigger. I was alone in my house with my brother and we were so scared… We took our bottles of water and hid under the table.”

Japan’s meteorological agency issued tsunami warnings and advisories for a stretch of coast 420km long, from Aomori prefecture in the north to Ibaraki prefecture in central Japan, just north of Tokyo.

Hundreds of aftershocks have shaken north-eastern Japan in the wake of the earlier earthquake, but few have measured higher than 7.0.

About 28,000 people are dead or missing, and hundreds of thousands were left homeless after the tsunami which ripped through north-eastern Japan.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-13005110

Fresh aftershock in Japan rouses fear, kills 2

Tokyo (CNN) — A powerful quake struck Japan on Thursday, killing two and triggering a tsunami warning for one prefecture and advisories in others, officials said.

The warning and advisories were lifted about 90 minutes later, the Japan Meteorological Agency said, but it left millions of Japanese rattled. The quake was closer to the Japanese coast than last month’s 9.0-magnitude quake.

There were reports of two casualties in the earthquake zone, and 132 people were injured, officials said. Seventeen of the 132 were thought to have serious injuries, the National Police Agency said. A handful of roads were damaged as well as a few homes. The Yamagata Prefectural office said a 63-year-old woman died after a power outage caused by the quake stopped her oxygen, which relied on electricity. A second person died in the Miyagi Prefecture, the office there said, though it did not say who or how.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said the quake was a magnitude 7.4. The U.S. Geological Survey said it was 7.1. The USGS also said Thursday’s quake could be considered an aftershock, making it the biggest one since the March 11 quake.

Workers evacuated the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant after the quake, the Tokyo Electric Power Company said. The company said it has communication with the plant, and the power is still on there. There were no immediate reports of damage, it said.

The workers returned later and were assessing any impact, CNN’s Kyung Lah reported Friday. TEPCO later said its work was not impacted by the quake.

About four million homes remained without power, police said, and water and train services were disrupted in some places.

The quake’s epicenter was off the coast of Miyagi Prefecture in northeastern Japan, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

The USGS said the quake was centered 41 miles (66 kilometers) from Sendai — one of the areas worst hit by last month’s 9.0-magnitude quake — and 73 miles (118 kilometers) from Fukushima, where a crisis has been under way at the nuclear plant since last month’s tsunami.

Public broadcaster NHK had reported a tsunami warning for Miyagi, saying people in that area should evacuate away from the shore to a safe place.

NHK also reported tsunami advisories for the Pacific coast of Aomori Prefecture, and for the Iwate, Fukushima and Ibaraki prefectures.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said based on all available data, “a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected and there is not a tsunami threat to Hawaii.”

The quake was centered 207 miles (333 kilometers) from Tokyo, the USGS said. It was 30.4 miles (49 kilometers) deep, the agency reported. The Japanese Meteorological Agency estimated the depth as 60 kilometers.

The earthquake took place shortly after 11:30 p.m. (10:30 a.m. ET).

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Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/04/07/japan.quake/index.html?hpt=T2