Japan issues tsunami warning after 7.1 magnitude earthquake.
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued a tsunami warning on July 28 after a powerful 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck Kyushu Island in southwestern Japan, leaving tens of thousands of households without power and causing tremors that reached the strongest level on Japan's seismic scale.
The earthquake caused widespread power outages.
The earthquake occurred at 4:27 p.m. (local time) on Kyushu Island. According to the JMA, the tremor reached level 7 on the Shindo seismic intensity scale – the highest level in Japan's assessment system.
The agency warned that tsunamis could reach heights of up to 1 meter. NHK television reported that waves of this magnitude may have already occurred in some coastal areas.
Approximately 45,000 households and businesses in Kumamoto Prefecture lost power after the earthquake, according to Kyushu Electric Power Company.
The Japan Nuclear Regulatory Authority said no abnormalities have been detected at the nuclear power plants. The three operating nuclear reactors in the region are still functioning normally.
About 30 minutes after the earthquake struck, an NHK reporter wearing a protective helmet and reporting live said that aftershocks were still continuing.
"The shaking was still continuing as I spoke. When the earthquake struck, the ground shook so violently that I couldn't stand still. People need to be prepared for possible aftershocks," the reporter said.
Japan is always at risk of major earthquakes.
This is not the first time Kumamoto Prefecture has suffered a serious earthquake. In 2016, the area experienced two consecutive earthquakes measuring 6.5 and 7.3 magnitude, killing 273 people and injuring more than 2,800.
On June 25th, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake also struck northern Japan, but it caused no casualties or significant damage.
Japan lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire – the intersection of four major tectonic plates – making it one of the most seismically active countries in the world. Each year, the country experiences hundreds of earthquakes, accounting for approximately 18% of all earthquakes globally.
The memory of the 9.0 magnitude earthquake off the coast in 2011 still haunts the Japanese people. This disaster caused a tsunami that killed or left approximately 18,500 people missing, and also led to a serious incident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.
Most recently, on April 20th, a 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck northern Japan, injuring at least 10 people and causing many high-rise buildings in Tokyo to shake. Following this event, authorities issued a special warning about the risk of earthquakes of 8.0 magnitude or higher, before lifting it after a week.
