To use this site, please disable the ad blocking feature and reload the page.
This website uses cookies to collect information about your visit for purposes such as showing you personalized ads and content, and analyzing our website traffic. By clicking “Accept all,” you will allow the use of these cookies.
Users accessing this site from EEA countries and UK are unable to view this site without your consent. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
Yomiuri Shimbun file photo The Japan Meteorological Agency
The Yomiuri Shimbun
19:11 JST, August 9, 2024
The Japan Meteorological Agency said Friday that it would release information about the status of seismic activity related to a potential Nankai Trough earthquake every evening for a week, noting that the likelihood of the long-anticipated quake has become relatively higher than usual following Thursday’s strong quake off Miyazaki Prefecture.
The first Nankai Trough Earthquake-Related Commentary was released on Friday by the JMA to explain the status of quakes and crustal deformation in the assumed epicenter area.
The commentary comes after the JMA issued an advisory called Megathrust Earthquake Attention for the first time on Thursday night in response to the magnitude-7.1 temblor in the Hyuganada Sea off the prefecture that evening. Some train services were suspended and beaches were closed in areas where the advisory was issued.
The Yomiuri Shimbun
The advisory covers 707 municipalities in 29 prefectures mainly on the nation’s Pacific side from Ibaraki to Okinawa prefectures, calling for residents to be aware of possible quakes for at least one week and to be ready to evacuate immediately if an earthquake occurs.
According to the JMA, seismic activity has continued in the vicinity of the epicenter in the Hyuganada Sea. As of 10 a.m. on Friday, tremors with an intensity of at least 1 on the Japanese seismic scale of 7 were observed 14 times, including Thursday’s magnitude-7.1 earthquake with an intensity of lower 6 measured in Miyazaki Prefecture.
The prefecture held a disaster control headquarters meeting at 10 a.m. on Friday and agreed on reminding people to be prepared for quakes. “We must keep alerting them in various ways,” Gov. Shunji Kono said.
The Nanki Express of Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai), which connects Nagoya and Kii-Katsuura, and Kintetsu Railway Co.’s limited express trains between Isuzugawa and Kagashima stations in Mie Prefecture will be suspended for about a week.
Shinkansen bullet trains have reduced their speeds on the Tokaido Shinkansen Line between Mishima and Mikawa-Anjo stations in both directions from Thursday night until the next week or so, causing at least a 10-minute delay in each service. Trains of East Japan Railway Co. and Odakyu Electric Railway Co. have operated at reduced speeds in some sections, too.
In Shirahama, Wakayama Prefecture, where tsunami triggered by the Nankai Trough earthquake would be expected to reach in just a few minutes, all beaches in the town, including Shirarahama Beach, were closed on Friday. Organizers decided to cancel a fireworks event scheduled Saturday at Shirarahama. The closure of the beaches is expected to last for a week, but a decision on when to open them will be made based on future conditions.
Chubu Electric Power Co.’s Hamaoka Nuclear Power Station in Omaezaki, Shizuoka Prefecture, was placed on 24-hour standby after the announcement of Megathrust Earthquake Attention. The electric company’s workers have patrolled the plant as well as inspecting storage facilities for combustible gas and heavy oil and checking safety of construction sites.
