Overview
- The Japan Meteorological Agency reported a magnitude 7.6 earthquake off Aomori at about 50 km depth around 23:15 local time, with strong shaking reaching a level 6 upper in Hachinohe.
- Tsunami alerts cover parts of Aomori, Iwate and southern Hokkaido with a maximum forecast of three meters, and advisories of up to one meter extend to Miyagi and Fukushima.
- Authorities urged more than 13,000 people to evacuate coastal areas, early reports indicated no casualties, and nuclear facilities initiated precautionary safety checks, according to NHK.
- Initial magnitude estimates varied across agencies, with Japan’s JMA updating to 7.6 and China’s CENC reporting 7.5, as sea-level monitoring continued across the Pacific; Chile reported no threat to its coast and Peru maintained heightened surveillance.
- In a separate event days earlier, a magnitude 7.0 quake struck a remote Alaska–Yukon region at about 10 km depth, producing strong local shaking without a tsunami warning or major damage and followed by minor aftershocks.