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What we know so far
- A magnitude 7.4 earthquake has struck off the coast of Fukushima – the site of 2011’s devastating 8.9 quake and resulting tsunami – at Tuesday 5.59am local time (Monday 8.59pm GMT).
- Tsunami warnings were issued for the Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures, with waves at Sendai port recorded at 1.4m high. The warnings have since been downgraded, although residents are still advised to move to high ground and avoid the shore.
- At the Fukushima Daini nuclear power plant, reactor number 3 spent fuel pool pump stopped operating at 6.10am as a result of the quake. Operation resumed at 7.49am and the plant is reported to be safe and “intact”.
- So far, five people are reported to have suffered minor injuries in the quake.
- Nissan is suspending work at its Fukushima factory, while flights to and from Sendai airport have been disrupted.
- Decommissioning work at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, destroyed in the 2011 quake, has been temporarily suspended.
Paul Somerville, chief geoscientist with risk frontiers at Australia’s Macquarie University, says:
This earthquake was a normal faulting earthquake that occurred at a shallow depth within the plate that overlies the Tohoku subduction zone, which generated the 2011 Mw 9.0 event.
It indicates east-west extension within the overriding plate, presumably due to the relaxation of horizontal stress that built up before the 2001 event. It occurred about 30km offshore of Fukushima.
It is very unlikely that this earthquake will have a large impact on Japan.
Transport has been affected by the quake and subsequent alerts.
Sendai port and Suma port have been affected by tsunami waves, although the warning has now been downgraded to an advisory.
Flights to and from Sendai airport have been delayed or cancelled.
Flights to Sendai Airport have been delayed or cancelled following a 7.4 earthquake off the coast of Fukushima. https://t.co/6DlfdBRk17 pic.twitter.com/JVguishM31
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) November 21, 2016
Associated Press has more on that incident – now resolved – at the Fukushima power plant:
A utility official says he believes a cooling water pump that stopped working at a Japanese nuclear power plant after a strong earthquake was shut off automatically by a safety system as the water in the pool shook.
The utility says a backup pump was launched to restore cooling water to spent fuel storage pool at the No 3 reactor of the Fukushima Daini plant.
The plant is close to the Fukushima Daiichi plant that went into meltdown in 2011 after a tsunami swamped the plant, knocking out power to the cooling systems. Both plants are operated by Tokyo-based Tepco.
Naohiro Masuda, head of Tepco’s decommissioning unit, said decommissioning work at the destroyed Fukushima Daiichi plant has been temporarily suspended because of the earthquake.
Yoshihide Suga, chief cabinet secretary, also addressed reporters’ questions about the Fukushima power plant.
He confirmed the affected reactor had resumed cooling function after a temporary stoppage.
Japan’s nuclear power plants have the most strict regulations in the world.
We always think of the worst-case scenario … safety is the utmost priority.
Yoshihide Suga, chief cabinet secretary, is speaking at a press conference.
He says tsunami warnings have been lifted and downgraded to “advisory”, adding:
Residents, please continue to evacuate … and please always listen to the latest information.
Suga says a 1.4m tidal wave was observed at Sendai, and tsunami waves were observed to the Izu Islands.
He says it is hard to say exactly whether another quake would occur but the decision to downgrade the alert was based on information from the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Suga says the prime minister, Shinzo Abe, who is overseas, “directly called me” to instruct the government to take adequate measures:
The government will continue to address how many people have sustained injury.
Tsunami warnings downgraded
Tsunami warnings for the Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures have been downgraded to alerts, a lower level of risk.
People in those areas are still advised to avoid the shore.
Tsunami advisories have been lifted entirely for some coastal regions: the Pacific coast of Aomori prefecture; the Kujukuri and Sotobo area and the Uchibo area of Chiba prefecture; and the Izu islands.
Updated
The epicentre of the earthquake is off the coast of Fukushima.
The magnitude 7.4 quake hit at a depth of around 20km, according to latest reports.
The earthquake shook buildings in Tokyo, 240km (150 miles) southwest of the epicentre.
Kirsty Brown is an Australian who has been living in Tokyo with her husband and 18-month-old daughter for just seven weeks. The family lives 20 minutes from Shinkjuku, and woke up to the earthquake early this morning:
I’d experienced a small quake here on one of our visits several years ago. I thought my husband pushed me out of the bed that time, but this was quite a good deal stronger, and you could feel the whole house wobble. The sensation was similar to your bed suddenly deciding to zig-zag, and it lasted for around 90 seconds.
No alarms went off, no alerts came to our phones. My dog and husband rolled over and went back to sleep, but I immediately took to my phone to see if I should be getting us ready for a bigger quake.
On moving here we were told about earthquake preparedness – similar to prepping for bushfires back home – so I was thinking about getting our backpack with water and clothes ready, and whether or not I needed to switch off the mains in the house.
But nothing happened, and there was no commotion outside, so within 30 minutes we were peacefully back to sleep – and have just now woken up again to the sounds of the junior school across from us starting their day as usual.
And another reader tweets me to say:
@Claire_Phipps Australian on hols in Tokyo, Sumida. Building was shaking and swaying for 5 mins at 6am
— Fetch Me My Lolly (@fetchmemylolly) November 21, 2016
Nissan is suspending work at its Fukushima factory, Reuters reports:
Nissan Motor Co said it would suspend work at its engine factory in Fukushima at least until a tsunami warning is lifted after a powerful earthquake rocked northern Japan early on Tuesday.
A spokesman said there were no injuries or damage at the plant, which was badly damaged in an earthquake and tsunami disaster in March 2011.
Separately, Toyota Motor Corp said all its factories in northeastern Japan were operating as usual.
Police: two people injured
Japan’s National Police Agency has said two people were slightly injured during the quake.
NHK News reports that one woman in Yabuki, Fukushima prefecture, was hurt when a cupboard fell over.
A man in Fukushima city is also reported to have suffered minor wounds.
Experts in Australia have been assessing today’s earthquake against the devastating 2011 quake and tsunami:
Professor James Goff, director of the Australia-Pacific tsunami research centre and natural hazards research laboratory, University of New South Wales, says:
In general, with the size of the earthquake experienced, I would not expect any wave to reach the heights of those experienced in 2011, but that does not mean that this event will not be damaging. Tsunamis as small as 90cm can be extremely damaging and so in a sense, we are ‘watching this space’…
One concern is not necessarily the size of the earthquake itself but whether or not it might generate submarine landslides that can themselves generate large tsunamis.
Associate professor Dale Dominey-Howes, disaster risk management expert at the University of Sydney, says:
Today’s event is much smaller than the 2011 catastrophic event. The earthquake maybe an aftershock of the 2011 event. It has affected the same region as the 2011 event.
A regional tsunami has been generated – smaller than 2011 but still potentially dangerous. People who live in the region have been advised to evacuate, with authorities taking no chances after the 2011 disaster.
Residents in the region are still struggling to recover from the 2011 event resulting in compound socio-psychological impacts on survivors. Aftershocks will continue in the region for days to weeks to come.
Tsunami update
A 1.4m-high tsunami wave has been observed in Sendai, Miyagi prefecture, at 8.03am.
It’s the highest so far recorded, although officials stress that second and subsequent waves could be higher, and are still urging people in affected areas to move to higher ground.
Other high waves recorded include:
- Soma Port, 90cm, at 7.06am.
- Ishinomaki Ayukawa, 80cm, at 7.39am.
- Kuji Port, 80cm, at 7.54am.
- Onahama Port, 60cm, at 6.49am.
It’s currently 9am in Japan.
There have so far been reports of only minor injuries following the magnitude 7.4 quake, which struck just before 6am local time at a depth of 25km.
Some photos from Kyodo, via Reuters, which are being circulated to news agencies. They show a traffic jam and concerned onlookers.
Updated
The Japanese prime minister, Shinzo Abe, has issued a statement:
I have ordered government officials to provide the public with up-to-date and accurate information concerning tsunami evacuation.
Fukushima plant update
Tepco says the Fukushima power plant “remains intact” and safe.
The company confirms the reactor number 3 spent fuel pool pump tripped and stopped operating at 6.10am.
Operation resumed at 7.49am.
Tepco says the stoppage was caused by the tremor and “strong acceleration” at the power plant.
The quake also caused the temperature inside the reactor to increase to 29.5C from 28.7C over 90 minutes.
At 6.38am, the Fukushima Daiichi and Daini plants had a tsunami wave about 1m high.
A second wave was “not very high”.
There have been no casualties at the Fukushima plant.
Updated
The Fukushima Daini reactor 3 cooling system, which had stopped operating, has been restored.
The operator of the plant said no abnormalities have been observed.
Power was temporarily lost for cooling water for a spent fuel pool at the Fukushima Daini plant, but has been restored, broadcaster NHK reports.
New tsunami warning for Miyagi prefecture
A tsunami warning has now been issued for the Miyagi prefecture, expanding the zone believed to be under threat.
Residents are told to evacuate their homes for higher ground.
Japan revises quake up to magnitude 7.4
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) is holding a news conference.
It says the initial quake, recorded at 5.59am, has been revised up to magnitude 7.4.
A tsunami alert has been issued, centring on Fukushima.
There is also a warning that landslides may occur.
The tide level is still rising along the coast, with waves as high as 1m now reaching the shore.
Residents are being instructed to stay away from the water.
There are warnings that second and subsequent waves can be higher than the initial tsnuami waves.
Residents of Japan’s northern Pacific coast are still being told to leave their homes and seek higher ground via televised tsunami advisories:
Updated
Fukishima cooling system has stopped operating
NHK reports from Fukishima that the Fukushima Daini Reactor 3 cooling system has stopped operating, but “no abnormalities have been observed”.
Tepco, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, says cooling water has not leaked and it is preparing to resume operation within one to two hours.
Broadcaster NHK reports that it does not seem tanks have been affected by the quake and the power plant buildings are above water level.
Earthquakes are a familiar experience for Japan, as AFP details:
Japan sits at the junction of four tectonic plates and experiences a number of relatively violent quakes every year.
A massive undersea quake that hit in March 2011 sent a tsunami barrelling into Japan’s northeast coast, leaving more than 18,000 people dead or missing, and sending three reactors into meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant.
In April this year, two strong earthquakes hit southern Japan’s Kumamoto prefecture, followed by more than 1,700 aftershocks, leaving at least 50 dead and causing widespread damage.
This is Claire Phipps picking up the live blog coverage.
The Japanese prime minister, Shinzo Abe, is currently in in Buenos Aires, after attending the Apec summit in Peru.
Speaking there, he said the government would do its utmost to respond to the quake.
Updated
Tsunami’s first waves smaller than expected
The first tsunami waves to reach the coast of Fukushima, Japan have ranged between 30 and 90cm, much lower than the three metres that was at first predicted.
However, Japanese media warn that the tsunami’s waves can increase over time as it continues to strike the coast.
The coolant pool at one of the reactors at Fukushima Daini nuclear power plant, one of two in the region, has been turned off, according to NHK World. There is no danger at this time at the site of the plant, and there is plenty of time before the reactors get dangerously warm.
Today’s tsunami will not be nearly as large as 2011’s disastrous wave, according to Dr. Lucy Jones, a seismologist and scientist emerita at the US Geological Survey.
Tsunami recorded near Fukushima from today’s M7.3 quake. Mag=size of fault & this is much smaller than 3.11.11 https://t.co/XX4Q6ywEfw pic.twitter.com/uIlVQIk9am
— Dr. Lucy Jones (@DrLucyJones) November 21, 2016
Japanese officials are still urging people to evacuate the affected area.
At Fukushima’s two nuclear power plants, Fukushima Daiichi and Fukishima Daini, external power sources and coolant water have not been affected so far by the earthquake, according to NHK World. “Now staff are watching closely to see any abnormalities.”
In this video you can see water rushing out of the harbor at Iwaki City. Water levels typically go down just before a tsunami strikes the shoreline.
Video from NHK live stream shows water rushing out of the harbor at Iwaki City in Japan just now. pic.twitter.com/O6vqjg27wz
— Jim Dalrymple II (@JimDalrympleII) November 21, 2016
Onohama Port is now reporting a tsunami height of 90cm, according to NHK World.
Updated
Tsunami waves begin to arrive along the Fukushima coast
Japanese broadcaster NHK world is reporting that waves are beginning to arrive. 60cm tsunami waves have been observed offshore, and the waves are expected to be as high as three metres when they reach the shoreline, NHK reports.
You can watch the live broadcast, which is being live-translated into English, here.
This is the full text of the tsunami warning issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (note that the strength of the earthquake was at first reported to be 7.3 magnitude but was later downgraded to 6.9, according to the US Geological Survey).
#Tsunami warning issued by Pacific Tsunami Warning Center for 7.3 magnitude #Earthquake in Japan today#Fukushima pic.twitter.com/rQvxaE0ux1
— Ron Baalke (@RonBaalke) November 21, 2016
Updated
A tsunami warning has been issued in Fukushima Prefecture after an earthquake struck off the East coast of Japan in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
#BREAKING — Powerful M7.3 #earthquake hits #Japan coast off #Fukushima at 20:59 GMT. #Tsunami alert on. pic.twitter.com/31am5SzEwo
— Yannis Koutsomitis (@YanniKouts) November 21, 2016
The earthquake measured 6.9 magnitude, according to the US Geological Survey. Japanese media are reporting that a tsunami as large as three metres high could be about to strike the coastline, and are urging everyone to evacuate coastal areas.
The evacuation warnings are urging residents to remember the “great earthquake” of 2011, which measured 9.1.
That earthquake and the tsunami that followed killed more than 15,000 people, injured more than 6,000 more, and left nearly quarter of a million people without homes, and also caused a meltdown at the Fukushima Daiishi nuclear power plant.
Updated
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