Strong earthquake shakes Japan, no tsunami warning issued

A powerful earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale struck Japan in the early hours of Friday morning (Cyprus time), with no tsunami warning issued thus far.

This comes a day after Japan issued its first-ever warning of an increased risk of a ‘mega-earthquake’ in the near future. The alert, issued Thursday evening, urged citizens to remain vigilant but did not recommend evacuations.

Japanese authorities clarified that while a major earthquake was not imminent, the probability of such an event was higher than usual. The warning followed a magnitude 7.1 earthquake off the southern island of Kyushu, which caused no significant damage.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida cancelled his planned trip to Central Asia due to the mega-earthquake warning. “As prime minister, I bear the utmost responsibility for crisis management, and I have decided to remain in Japan for at least one week,” Kishida stated.

Japan, situated at the intersection of tectonic plates along the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’, is one of the world’s most seismically active countries. The archipelago, home to approximately 125 million people, experiences about 1,500 seismic tremors annually, most of which are weak.

The country’s strict anti-seismic building regulations and public awareness of protective measures typically limit damage from even the strongest earthquakes.

(information from in.gr)