PM Leads Disaster Response Operations Until Early Hours Following Earthquake off Aomori Prefecture

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:58 JST, December 10, 2025

Shortly after the powerful earthquake off the east coast of Aomori Prefecture hit the Tohoku region and Hokkaido on Monday night, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi went inside the Prime Minister’s Office and led disaster response operations until the early hours on Tuesday.

The prime minister personally provided information, demonstrating her commitment to crisis management.

Takaichi spoke to reporters as she entered the Prime Minister’s Office at 11:50 p.m. on Monday, about 35 minutes after the earthquake.

“Under the principle of putting human life first, the government will work as one to devote all efforts to emergency disaster response measures, including saving lives and rescuing victims,” she said.

The Prime Minister also told the reporters that the response office was set up in the Prime Minister’s Office’s crisis control center.

After hearing about the damage caused by the quake, she left the office at 2:32 a.m. on Tuesday. As she came out, she told reporters, “Please check your earthquake preparations again, such as securing furniture.”

Takaichi responded to the media again after returning to the office about five and a half hours later at 8:11 a.m., briefing them on how many people had been injured. Ahead of this, shortly before 4 a.m., she appealed to people in the areas hit hard by the quake in a post on X, saying, “Please be well-prepared for [more quakes] so that you can evacuate as soon as you feel a tremor,” showing her resolve to disseminate information widely.