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Heed the warning of Japan’s New Year earthquake

There are lessons following the Noto temblor, which was devastating but could have been much worse.

An area devastated by a quake-induced fire in the city of Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture on Jan 3, after a major 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the Noto region.

An area devastated by a quake-induced fire in the city of Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, on Jan 3, after a major 7.6-magnitude earthquake struck the Noto region.

PHOTO: AFP

Gearoid Reidy

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For a long moment, Japan feared the worst.

After the

7.6-magnitude earthquake which struck on New Year’s Day,

the authorities announced the most serious tsunami alert issued since the 2011 disaster that devastated the Tohoku region. Waves of up to 5m were feared. The temblor caused tremors on the highest level on Japan’s Shindo shaking scale for only the seventh time on record. A major calamity felt imminent.

Heed the warning of Japan’s New Year earthquake

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