7.3 and 6.2 magnitude earthquakes strike off east coast of Japan

December 7, 2012 JAPAN A strong quake centered off northeastern Japan shook buildings as far away as Tokyo on Friday and triggered a one-meter tsunami in an area devastated by last year’s Fukushima disaster, but there were no reports of deaths or serious damage. The quake had a preliminary magnitude of 7.3, the U.S. Geological Survey said, and thousands of coastal residents were ordered to evacuate to higher ground, but the tsunami warning was lifted two hours after the tremor struck. The March 2011 earthquake and following tsunami killed nearly 20,000 people and triggered the world’s worst nuclear crisis in 25 years when the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant was destroyed, leaking radiation into the sea and air. Workers at the plant were ordered to move to safety after Friday’s quake. Tokyo Electric Power Co, the operator of the Fukushima nuclear plant, reported no irregularities at its nuclear plants. All but two of Japan’s 50 nuclear reactors have been idled since the Fukushima disaster as the government reviews safety. The quake measured a “lower 5” in Miyagi prefecture on Japan’s scale of one to seven, meaning there might be some damage to roads and houses that are less quake resistant. The scale measures the amount of shaking and in that sense gives a better idea of possible damage than the magnitude. The quake registered a 4 in Tokyo. The one-meter tsunami hit at Ishinomaki, in Miyagi, at the centre of the devastation from the March 2011 disaster. All Miyagi trains halted operations and Sendai airport, which was flooded by the tsunami last year, closed its runway. Five people in the prefecture were slightly injured. “I was in the centre of the city the very moment the earthquake struck. I immediately jumped into the car and started running away towards the mountains. I’m still hiding inside the car,” said Ishinomaki resident Chikako Iwai. I have the radio on and they say the cars are still stuck in the traffic. I’m planning to stay here for the next couple of hours.” There are vast areas of Ishinomaki that still have not been cleaned up since last year’s tsunami. Many houses lie in ruins, full of rubble. Workers by the shore still sort through thousands of cars that were swamped and destroyed. The cars are piled up and being taken apart for parts and scrap. Narita airport outside Tokyo was back in action after a brief closure for safety checks. There were small tsunamis, measuring in the centimeters, elsewhere near the epicenter. Tokyo, with a population of 12 million, sits on the junction of four tectonic plates: the Eurasian, North American, Philippine and Pacific. The sudden bending or breaking of any plate can trigger an earthquake. –Reuters
                                           Eyewitnesses say 7.3 earthquake was no ordinary earthquake

Seismic Watch 3

This entry was posted in Earth Changes, Earth Watch, Earthquake Omens?, High-risk potential hazard zone, Lithosphere collapse & fisssure, Potential Earthchange hotspot, Seismic tremors, Signs of Magnetic Field weakening, Strange high tides & freak waves, Time - Event Acceleration, Volcano Watch. Bookmark the permalink.

18 Responses to 7.3 and 6.2 magnitude earthquakes strike off east coast of Japan

  1. Glenn Rice says:

    More birth pains. Is it my imagination, or are these things increasing in frequency lately?

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  2. awt says:

    why the heck is there a big picture of a wave for the fist video. It has absolutely nothing to do with the video and and tsunami that was reported was one meter high.

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  3. john says:

    Tsunami warning was cancelled it was only a few centimeters high so nothing too worry about. They got lucky this time.

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  4. Ants says:

    Is that what,s causing the whole earth to shake on USGS? http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/operations/heliplots_gsn.php or has USGS been hacked?

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  5. Bert Fannin says:

    Japan, and the area around her, is very sismicly active. It is not uprising that there would be large Mag. earthquakes.

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  6. Irene C says:

    Now there was a 6.3 in New Zealand

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  7. Emanni says:

    Japan meteorological agency warns potential M8.0 to hit east coast of Japanese island
    Having the M7.3 of 12/7/2012, Mr. Nagai from Meteorological agency warned bigger earthquake of M8.0 class is expected.
    http://fukushima-diary.com/2012/12/japan-meteorological-agency-warns-potential-m8-0-to-hit-east-coast-of-japanese-island/

    Significant similarity between M7.3 of 12/7/2012 and M7.3 of 3/9/2011
    At 17:18 of 12/7/2012, M7.3 hit “Off the coast of Sanriku” and aftershock keeps occurring.
    This seismic situation is significantly similar to 3/9/2011, 2 days before 311.
    http://fukushima-diary.com/2012/12/column-significant-similarity-between-m7-3-of-1272012-and-m7-3-of-392011/

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  8. Angelsong says:

    The reporter named Alex in the first video posted I think appropriately described this 7.3 earthquake as a “good wake up call”. It is my prayer that people everywhere will open their spiritual eyes and see things for the way they really are…

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  9. Irene C says:

    Anyone see the 7.1 in Indonesia this morning? The Ring of Fire is quite active.

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