18 April 2024 , 07:19
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Millions of people are on high alert after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake hit Japan with scenes of rubble in the street.
The quake's epicenter was located in the Bungo Channel, which separates the Japanese islands of Kyushu and Shikoku, and was at a depth of around 15 miles. Footage shared on social media showed buildings shaking from the tremor. Nine people have reportedly been taken to hospital including a man in his 90s who was thrown out of his bed from the ferocity of the shaking that last for more than 10 seconds.
The earthquake registered an intensity level of 6 on Japan's 1-7 scale in Ehime and Kochi prefectures, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency, but no tsunami warnings was issued. “In areas where the jolt was strong, please do not approach any dangerous areas. There is no risk of tsunami caused by this earthquake,” stated the JMA on X.
Rubble left in the street in the city of Ozu (JIJI Press/AFP via Getty Images)
A map showing the earthquake's epicentre (EMSC)Shikoku Electric Power, the operator of the Ikata nuclear plant in Ehime prefecture, stated that there were no irregularities following the earthquake, according to public broadcaster NHK. It comes just two weeks after the strongest earthquake in a quarter-century rocked nearby Taiwan, killing nine people and injuring at least 1,011 people. Dozens were stranded at quarries and a national park and some residents scrambled out the windows of damaged buildings.
The quake, which injured more than 1,000, struck just before 8am on Wednesday, April 3, and was centered off the coast of rural, mountainous Hualien County, where some buildings leaned at severe angles, their ground floors crushed. Just over 150 kilometres away in the capital of Taipei, tiles fell from older buildings, and schools evacuated students to sports fields as aftershocks followed.
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Shattered roof tiles lie scattered on a road in Uwajima in Ehime Prefecture, western Japan (Kyodo)The Asia-pacific region is regularly jolted by quakes. Taiwan lies along the Pacific "Ring of Fire," the line of seismic faults encircling the Pacific Ocean where most of the world's earthquakes occur. Taiwan's earthquake monitoring agency said the quake was 7.2 magnitude while the US Geological Survey (USGS) put it at 7.4.
Damage to a road in Ozu (AP)It struck about 18 kilometers (11 miles) from Hualien and was about 35 kilometers (21 miles) deep. Multiple aftershocks followed. The April 3 earthquake was felt in Shanghai and provinces along China 's southeastern coast, according to Chinese media. China and Taiwan are about 160 kilometers (100 miles) apart.