The magnitude 7.3 quake struck late at night Tokyo time. It was located off the coast in the same general area as the 2011 earthquake which led to a massive tsunami and the disaster at the Fukushima power plant.
The region is part of northern Japan that was devastated by a deadly 9.0 quake and tsunami 11 years ago that also caused nuclear plant meltdowns.
The Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, which operates the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant where the cooling systems failed after the 2011 disaster, said that workers were checking for any possible damage.
The Japan Meteorological Agency said the quake hit at 11:36 p.m. at a depth of 60 kilometers (36 miles) below the sea…
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters that the government was assessing the extent of damage and promised to do its utmost for rescue and relief operations.
“Please first take action to save your life,” Kishida tweeted.
Here’s a map of the epicenter:
The epicenter of the powerful 7.3 magnitude #Earthquake was just offshore of #Japan’s east coast.https://t.co/86PcafTBxO pic.twitter.com/84j0cjo2jl
— Chikage Windler WX (@ChikageWeather) March 16, 2022
A tsunami warning has been issued with an expected wave of about 1 meter along the coast closest to the epicenter. The NY Times reports there was a small wave of about 8 inches so not enough to do any real damage.
Meanwhile, as many as 2 million people are currently without power as a result of the quake, about 700,000 of them in Tokyo.
Earthquake jolts Japan's northeast coast, cuts power to parts of Tokyo https://t.co/vPZzcy6z0s pic.twitter.com/1BtUFqcKkv
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 16, 2022
Earthquake hit Japan just now…
There was a sudden blackout in Tokyo😨 pic.twitter.com/VO8ibeeU9j— Kyle Anime Scouter (@kylescouter) March 16, 2022
There are already lots of clips recorded during the quake. Plenty of movement and people clearly worried but it doesn’t appear to have done much damage. This woman was on the 13th floor. (Some NSFW language.)
earthquake from the 13th floor in tokyo. pic.twitter.com/BH4cC5m9R8
— 𝕄𝕆𝕆𝔻𝕐 ❥ (@lumagloom) March 16, 2022
Another clip:
Breaking News: A strong earthquake has struck northeastern Japan on Wednesday night. A tsunami adivsory has heen issued for Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures. pic.twitter.com/nOjiv9eAtD
— timetravel07 (@timetravel077) March 16, 2022
This clip from an 8th floor office shows the shaking was pretty severe in some areas.
【動画】宮城 仙台市青葉区のビル8階にある事務所で大きな揺れhttps://t.co/eOFUk0DBe2
午後11時半ごろ、仙台市青葉区のビルの8階にある事務所で撮影された映像です。大きな揺れが30秒ほど続いて机やいすが大きく動き、揺れの影響で棚の扉が開いたり、閉じたりしていました。#nhk_video pic.twitter.com/avm54NIidr— NHKニュース (@nhk_news) March 16, 2022
This was shot in a hotel in Fukushima:
【動画】福島 郡山市のビジネスホテル室内 地震の発生時の様子https://t.co/hSFl6pg4SZ
震度5強を観測した福島県郡山市のビジネスホテルで、地震の発生時の様子を撮影した映像では、備え付けられている机やいすのほか、加湿器や壁にかけられた額も大きく揺れ動いています。#nhk_video pic.twitter.com/E7Bp6qBsFC— NHKニュース (@nhk_news) March 16, 2022
This one shows how strongly things were shaking outside.
めちゃくちゃ揺れてた!びっくり!
#地震 pic.twitter.com/6tmdjeD85L
— 銀河系(ぁ´・ω)(д・`様) (@asm_of_a_galaxy) March 16, 2022
Also, cats apparently don’t care for earthquakes:
BREAKING: Powerful earthquake hits northern Japan, tsunami advisory issued.
Here is the footage of the cat reaction to the earthquake.#地震 pic.twitter.com/B7l1bLlXYj
— World Updates Live (@itswpceo) March 16, 2022
If you’ve never been in an earthquake, it’s a frightening experience. Part of it is that you can’t tell as it’s happening if it’s about to get much worse or if it’s about to settle down. I imagine for the people who lived through the 2011 quake in the same area this was pretty terrifying reminder. Finally, here’s one more clip from various cameras around the city.
宮城県と福島県で震度6強https://t.co/CO3JmvpVcx#nhk_video pic.twitter.com/JqHSHpWg7C
— NHKニュース (@nhk_news) March 16, 2022
Join the conversation as a VIP Member