Japan lifts mega quake advisory a week after powerful tremor
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The Dec 8 quake off Japan's northern coast triggered tsunami waves of up to 70cm and injured over 40 people, but no major damage was reported.
PHOTO: EPA
TOKYO – Japan lifted a rare warning for a potential mega quake a week after a 7.5-magnitude tremor struck off its northern coast, the country’s weather agency said on Dec 16.
The Dec 8 quake
In the wake of the tremor, JMA officials issued a rare advisory, warning of an elevated risk of a mega quake – defined as an 8-magnitude or larger tremor – in the north of the country.
Scientists say that after an earthquake of 7-magnitude or larger, there is a 1 per cent chance of a mega quake within seven days, and the advisory urges people to prepare emergency bags should they need to evacuate quickly.
JMA official Issei Suganuma told AFP on Dec 16 that the “special warning period for residents had expired at midnight”.
“But it doesn’t mean that quakes will not happen again, so we’d like residents to remain vigilant,” he added.
The JMA said there was still a heightened risk of a mega quake occurring off the northern coast, but it would decline as time passes.
According to the government’s disaster prevention guidelines issued in March, an offshore mega quake in the Hokkaido-Sanriku region – where the latest advisory applied – could cause a tsunami of up to 30m and kill as many as 199,000 people.
It could also destroy up to 220,000 houses and buildings and cause up to 31 trillion yen (S$258 billion) in economic damage, the guidelines said. AFP
