SHIKA, Japan – A powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck western Japan on New Year’s Day, resulting in the deaths of at least six people and injuries to dozens more. The quake hit a wide area on the Sea of Japan coast, causing widespread damage to roads and buildings and cutting off power to 45,000 homes. The earthquake, which struck about 26 miles northeast of Anamizu in Ishikawa prefecture, triggered a major tsunami warning in Ishikawa Prefecture on the Noto Peninsula.
Rescuers are currently facing a “battle against time” to locate survivors amidst the aftershocks. Japan’s Meteorological Agency warned that strong tremors could continue for days to come. As a precaution, over 97,000 people were evacuated from their homes, and authorities initially warned of potential tsunami waves as high as 10 feet along the Sea of Japan coast.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated that emergency personnel are working as quickly as possible to rescue those trapped in collapsed buildings, while also assessing the overall damage from the earthquake. The quake also shook buildings in central Tokyo, and a maritime police officer in Gangwon Province, South Korea, reported minor tsunami waves hitting the waters off the east coast of the country.
This earthquake marked the first time Japan has issued a major tsunami warning since 2011, when a 9.0-magnitude quake struck Tohoku, leading to deadly tsunami waves. As aftershocks ranging from 4.0 to 5.0 magnitude continued to hit central Japan, the country’s nuclear authority assured that there was “no risk of radioactivity leaking from nuclear power plants” in the affected areas. Japan, located in the Pacific Ring of Fire, has developed one of the world’s most sophisticated tsunami warning systems due to the constant threat of earthquakes caused by tectonic plate interactions.