Magnitude 7.5 Earthquake Shakes Northern Japan, Injuring 30

TaiwanPlus News

A magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck off the coast of northern Japan on Monday night, triggering tsunamis across the coastline. At least 30 injuries were recorded from falling objects. Officials are now urging the public to watch out for a potential megaquake.

Transcript

00:00A magnitude 7.5 quake shook northern Japan in the middle of the night.

00:18Earthquake sirens echoed throughout the region,

00:21waking up residents and urging them to get to safety.

00:24Dozens of people were injured by fallen objects,

00:27including one man whose car fell into a sinkhole.

00:3190,000 people were ordered to evacuate.

00:34Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae said an emergency response office

00:38was activated minutes after the tremor

00:40and is keeping close tabs on regional damage.

00:44We have so far received reports of 30 injuries and one residential fire.

00:50We are continuing efforts to release information on the relevant damage.

00:57The quake struck off the eastern coast of Aomori Prefecture in northern Japan,

01:03triggering tsunamis as high as 70 centimeters in some areas.

01:08Local weather officials said the waves posed no immediate danger

01:11and lifted tsunami warnings after a few hours.

01:15But they're urging the country to stay vigilant,

01:18as strong aftershocks may strike at any moment.

01:21Please remain vigilant for earthquakes of similar scale to this one,

01:26measuring over level 6 out of 7 for up to the next week,

01:30and in particular, over the next two to three days.

01:34Japan wasn't the only country to experience an overnight earthquake.

01:38On Taiwan's east coast,

01:40a magnitude 5.7 quake struck only three hours before the one in Japan.

01:44The Central Weather Administration told Taiwan Plus

01:48that the two quakes are too far apart and are likely unrelated.

01:52And any more quakes near Japan will not affect Taiwan.

01:55In Japan, it's the first time authorities have ever issued a post-earthquake warning

02:15for a possible follow-up tremor.

02:18With a mega quake equivalent to a magnitude 8 expected,

02:22residents will be on alert for an even bigger seismic event to come.

02:27Howard Zhang and Irene Lin for Taiwan Plus.

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