Strong earthquake in Japan Fukushima region: Tokyo is also affected

A 7.3 magnitude earthquake has shaken the Japanese region of Fukushima, there is a tsunami warning. Buildings in Tokyo also began to sway. The power went out in two million households.

In Japan, a powerful earthquake has shaken the region around the Fukushima nuclear ruins. The meteorological agency issued a tsunami warning for Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures, saying the tsunami could reach a height of one meter. The 7.3 magnitude earthquake happened at a depth of 60 kilometers under the sea. According to the operator, there were no further irregularities in the former nuclear power plant. Workers continued to check it for possible damage. According to the Kyodo news agency, numerous people had to be taken to hospitals in the Fukushima region. Buildings in the greater Tokyo area, 250 kilometers away, were also swaying for a long time as a result of the earthquake. High-speed train operations were automatically halted, roads in the Northeast were closed. According to the energy supplier Tepco, a total of around two million households were without electricity, including 700,000 in Tokyo.

Report: Bullet train derailed

The Japanese government set up an emergency staff. According to the broadcaster NHK, the authorities ordered an evacuation for parts of the coastal region in Miyagi Prefecture. A 20 centimeter high tsunami had arrived in the port city of Ishinomaki in the north-east of the country. A bullet train derailed in the region, the report said. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters that the government was assessing the extent of the damage. He promised to do everything in their power for rescue and relief efforts. “Please take action first to save your life,” he tweeted.

As ARD correspondent Kathrin Erdmann reported, the quake started slowly and eventually got stronger. Then the earth seemed to calm down for a moment before it shook again for a few seconds and also scared people in Tokyo late in the evening. Normally, the residents are informed with an urgent warning tone when there are earthquakes of this magnitude, but that didn’t work this time.

Triple catastrophe eleven years ago

The tremor happened shortly before midnight (local time) – around eleven years after the region in the north-east of the Asian island kingdom was devastated by a devastating magnitude 9 earthquake and the resulting massive tsunami. A gigantic tidal wave had hit that March 11th 2011 reared up on the Pacific coast and everything was crushed: towns, villages and huge acreage sank in the water and mud masses. The flood killed around 20,000 people. As a result, a super meltdown occurred at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Fukushima. Japan is located on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, where tectonic plates collide. The country is therefore regularly hit by earthquakes.