2024-02-17 22:19:27
Foto: Kotaro Nakatani | Shutterstock
Text: Hugo León
A powerful wave of earthquakes hit Japan this Monday, January 1, including one measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale, with landslides, fires and massive power outages as a consequence, international press agencies reported.
In total, 21 earthquakes were recorded in 90 minutes, including the strongest of 7.6 degrees, with the epicenter in the coastal region of Noto, Ishikawa prefecture, in the central region of the country.
The Japanese media fear the death of at least two people, while the Japan Meteorological Agency explained that the tremor was one of more than 50 earthquakes of magnitude 3.2 or greater that shook the region during the holiday of New Year.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida appeared on television urging people to evacuate quickly to higher ground due to the possibility of a tsunami hitting the area.
A few minutes after the strongest earthquake, waves of at least 1.2 meters high hit the port of Wajima and another series of smaller tsunamis were reported in various places in the area.
Meanwhile, the Japan Meteorological Agency issued a major tsunami warning (applicable for waves of five meters), but it was later noted that the waters could rise up to three meters. For its part, the US Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, which had also issued an alarm, stated that the danger had largely passed.
According to Japanese specialists, it is possible that new earthquakes will occur in the next two or three days.
According to local authorities, no less than 30,000 homes were left without electricity and it is believed that at least six people were among the rubble of collapsed buildings.
According to press reports in the city of Suzu, Ishikawa, many houses collapsed and a large number of injured people have been received at the hospital. Meanwhile, damaged streets and highways delay the transportation of the injured in this area and also in others affected by the earthquake.