Strong Tremors, Tsunami Warnings Remind Residents of 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake

The Yomiuri Shimbun

7:00 JST, December 10, 2025

The powerful tremors that rattled the Tohoku region and Hokkaido late Monday and subsequent tsunami warnings reminded many residents of the terror of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.

The earthquake, with its epicenter in the waters off Aomori Prefecture, forced residents in the affected areas to spend the night in evacuation centers.

“It was a tremendous shake, just like what I experienced in the Great East Japan Earthquake,” said the 78-year-old owner of an inn in Hachinohe in the prefecture.

The earthquake registered an upper 6 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in the city and a lower 6 in the neighboring towns of Oirase and Hashikami in the prefecture.

When the earthquake struck, the owner was at home inside the inn. Plates fell from shelves and smashed on the floor.

“All I could do was protect myself,” he said.

The safety of two lodging guests was confirmed, and no power outage occurred. However, he said, “I have to clean up the mess inside the building. I just don’t know where to start.”

In Kamaishi, Iwate Prefecture, residents evacuated to higher ground after a tsunami warning was issued. Calls for evacuation blared on a community public address system, filling the city with a tense atmosphere.

About 50 people evacuated to a gymnasium at Kamaishi Municipal Elementary School, which is located on high ground in the city.

“We put on warm clothes, grabbed medicine, hand warmers and a little food, and fled immediately,” said a 79-year-old woman who evacuated with her husband. “The community address system reminds me of the Great East Japan Earthquake, and I feel very uneasy.”

In Miyako, Iwate Prefecture, police officers helped residents evacuate safely on the streets.

A 54-year-old woman hastily went up a slope with her three family members and their pet dog.

“At first, I wasn’t convinced I should evacuate, but then the tsunami warning was issued, so I rushed to evacuate. It’s late at night, so I’m scared,” she said.

In Urakawa, Hokkaido, the 49-year-old owner of an inn located by the sea evacuated eight groups of guests from the facility upon receiving a tsunami warning. He then drove himself to a nearby gymnasium.

“The intense shaking lasted about 40 seconds. In July, evacuation orders were issued in the town due to a tsunami warning,” the owner said, recalling the time when an earthquake occurred near Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula. “Remembering that, I was able to act calmly.”

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