Japan earthquake: people ordered to evacuate affected areas after tsunami alerts issued

Residents along the coast of central Japan have been told to flee their homes after the government issued a major tsunami warning.

Thousands ran for higher ground from the predicted five-metre (16.4ft) tsunami, following a powerful earthquake off the coast of Ishikawa Prefecture.

The quake, with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6 off the Noto Peninsula, caused widespread damage to infrastructure, homes and businesses in the region.

Tsunami warnings were also issued for Niigata, Toyama, Yamagata and other prefectures along the Japan Sea coast.

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Japan dropped its highest-level tsunami alert, issued following a series of major earthquakes on Monday, but told residents of coastal areas not to return to their homes as deadly waves could still come.

Niigata is home to the world’s largest nuclear power plant, the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa complex, but government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi said it had not reported any irregularities.

Japan’s nuclear regulator had only lifted an operational ban on the plant days earlier, allowing it to seek a restart, but it was not operating at the time of the quake.

It was unclear how many fatalities had occurred last night, but four people were confirmed dead in Ishikawa prefecture, Kyodo News reported, citing the Ishikawa Prefectural Crisis Management Team.

Amateur videos posted online showed homes damaged or collapsed and power lines toppled in Ishikawa. Shaking from the quake was powerful enough to send people falling.

Fires were reported in several cities. Waves from the first of a series of tsunamis washed ashore in Noto but appear to have caused relatively light damage.

NHK flashed a message on its main channel urging people to ‘evacuate immediately!’ after the quake struck just after 4pm local time. “We realise your home, your belongings are all precious to you, but your lives are important above everything else. Run to the highest ground possible.”

Millions of residents in the region were at home marking New Year’s Day or visiting family and friends during the national holiday. Many now face a night in an evacuation centre or without power at home in freezing weather.

Japan’s Meteorological Agency said aftershocks of up to magnitude 7 could occur in the coming days, and warned residents to stay away from the coast and to take shelter. It said older people in particular are in danger of collapsing roofs or falling debris. Landslide warnings have also been issued in several areas.

US President Joe Biden said in a statement that his administration was in touch with Japanese officials and “ready to provide any necessary assistance for the Japanese people”.

The Irish Embassy in Japan said it was monitoring the aftermath of the quake and urged Irish citizens to follow the advice of local authorities and to contact the Embassy if they are concerned at (81) 03 3263 0695.

The day’s events brought back bitter memories of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami on the Tohoku (northeast) coast, the country’s worst recent natural disaster. The Tohoku disaster took least 18,000 lives and triggered a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant.

The Ishikawa earthquake is bound to reignite controversy about Japan’s attempts to restart its mothballed nuclear plants, particularly the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa facility. Plans to build another nuclear power plant close to the epicentre of today’s quake were scrapped two decades ago.