A strong magnitude 7.5 earthquake occurred off the eastern coast of Aomori Prefecture, Japan, on the evening of the 8th, resulting in multiple injuries.
As of now, 16 people have been injured in Aomori Prefecture. Among them, there were 12 injuries in Hachinohe City, with 1 injured each in the prefectural capital Aomori City, Goshogawara City, Tōhoku Town, and Rokkasho Village.
According to the Hidaka Town Fire Department in Hokkaido, a woman in her 70s was injured after she arrived at an evacuation shelter by car, slipped and fell when getting out due to icy road conditions.
Approximately 4,200 households in Aomori and Iwate prefectures experienced power outages at one point.
A total of 52,000 households—over 100,000 people—received evacuation instructions following the earthquake.
After the earthquake, the Japan Meteorological Agency issued tsunami warnings for the central Pacific coast of Hokkaido, the Pacific coast of Aomori Prefecture, and Iwate Prefecture.
According to NHK, around 1:00 a.m. on the 9th, a 70 cm high tsunami was observed at Kuji Port in Iwate Prefecture. Additionally, a 50 cm tsunami was observed in Urakawa Town, Hokkaido, and a 40 cm tsunami at Hachinohe Port in Aomori Prefecture.
In any case, the Japan Meteorological Agency lifted all tsunami warnings in the early hours.
The earthquake occurred at approximately 11:15 p.m. local time (about 10:15 p.m. Malaysia time) on the 8th, off the coast east of Aomori Prefecture. In the early hours of the 9th, the Japan Meteorological Agency revised the earthquake’s magnitude from 7.6 to 7.5 and the focal depth from 50 km to 54 km, and urged residents to remain prepared for possible strong quakes and tsunamis in the coming days.