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A powerful 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck southwestern Japan on Thursday, triggering tsunami warnings for many of the country’s western islands and causing mostly minor injuries.
The quake struck off the coast of Miyazaki Prefecture at 4.42pm local time (7.42am GMT), at a depth of about 18 miles (29km), Japan’s Meteorological Agency said.
Nine people were injured on the island of Kyushu, but the injuries were mostly minor, officials said. There were no reports of serious damage and tsunami warnings were later lifted.
Japan’s earthquake watchdogs earlier said it was 6.9 on the Richter scale, which was earlier revised down to 7.1. Authorities have issued a tsunami warning and residents of coastal Kochi and Miyazaki prefectures are being asked to evacuate their homes as a precaution until the warning is lifted.
However, the quake prompted seismologists to hold an emergency meeting in which they reassessed the level of risk of major earthquakes associated with the Nankai Valley east of southern Japan.
The Japan Meteorological Agency issued its first warning on Thursday of the risk of a major earthquake along the country’s Pacific coast following an earthquake that struck Kyushu.
Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida canceled plans to travel to Central Asia for a summit with regional leaders after weather officials flagged that the risk of a major Pacific coast earthquake was higher than usual, public broadcaster NHK reported.
Japan plans to cancel Mr Kishida’s trip, although the warning does not indicate that such an earthquake is certain to occur.
The visit to Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Mongolia was originally scheduled for Friday to Monday. Mr Kishida was due to visit Kazakhstan on Friday, followed by a visit to Uzbekistan before traveling to Mongolia for a summit on Monday.
The weather agency’s advisory warns of a high probability of a major earthquake in the Nankai Trench, a seafloor trench running along Japan’s Pacific coast where previous quakes have triggered massive tsunamis.
According to Japan’s Ministry of Infrastructure, the probability of a magnitude 8 or 9 earthquake in the next 30 years is estimated to be between 70 percent and 80 percent.
Advisories are issued instead of warnings when waves are not expected to exceed 1m (3.3ft), meaning they are relatively small but still pose a risk.
Some unverified videos on social media show cars and small structures shaking and several shops damaged.
The port of Miyazaki reported a rise of 20 inches, the largest ever, NHK reported.
The Miyazaki police chief told the broadcaster that they were checking for any structural damage to the buildings, but that there had been no damage so far.
The Japanese government has set up a special task force to respond to the earthquakes, AFP reported, citing an AA report. There were no immediate signs of major damage, according to the agency.
As one of the most tectonically active countries in the world, Japan has strict building standards designed to ensure structures can withstand even the most powerful earthquakes.
The country records about 1,500 earthquakes every year, more than any other country.
In 2011, Japan recorded its largest earthquake with a magnitude of 9.0. The epicenter of the earthquake was on its northeast coast and it triggered a massive tsunami that killed or disappeared around 18,500 people.
The disaster melted down three reactors at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, causing Japan’s worst post-war disaster and the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.
Additional reporting by agencies
