Tsunami warning issued in Japan after massive earthquake of magnitude 6.7 strikes northern Pacific region

A tsunami warning was issued in Japan after a massive earthquake of magnitude 6.7 hit the northern Pacific region on Sunday (Nov 9). The tremors struck around 5:03 pm in the waters off Iwate. The Japan Meteorological Agency said that a tsunami was possible in the region with waves of up to one metre (three feet) high. Shortly after the advisory was issued, the agency said that small tsunami waves were observed.

“A tsunami advisory has been issued,” the JMA said in a bulletin. It further warned that waves could strike the Iwate coast at any moment following the massive quake. Meanwhile, the US Geological Survey reported that the earthquake was of magnitude 6.8.

National broadcaster NHK reported that offshore tsunami waves were observed and urged residents to stay away from coastal regions.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the first tsunami hit Miyako, Iwate, at 5:37 pm, but it was so small that the agency said it could not measure its size. Two minutes later, a 10-centimetre (less than four inches) wave reached Ofunato, it said.

Japan is one of the world’s most seismically active countries. The island nation lies on top of four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific “Ring of Fire”. With a population of about 125 million people, Japan experiences about 1,500 earthquakes every year and accounts for about 18 per cent of the earthquakes in the world.

Meanwhile, an earthquake of magnitude 5.4 struck India’s Andaman Islands at 12:06 pm (local time) on Sunday (Nov 9). The quake was recorded at a depth of 90 kilometres in the Andaman Sea, 126 kilometres southeast of Diglipur, according to the National Centre for Seismology. No loss of life or damage was immediately reported. Following the earthquake, Malaysia said that there was no tsunami threat in the region.