A powerful earthquake struck central Japan on Monday, triggering warnings for residents to evacuate some areas on its west coast, destroying buildings, knocking out power to thousands of homes and disrupting travel to the region.
The quake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6 triggered waves of around 1 metre along parts of the Sea of Japan coast, with authorities saying larger waves could follow.
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued tsunami warnings for the coastal prefectures of Ishikawa, Niigata and Toyama. A major tsunami warning - the first since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that struck northeastern Japan - was initially issued for Ishikawa but later downgraded.
Russia also issued tsunami warnings in its far eastern cities of Vladivostok and Nakhodka.
Several houses have been destroyed and army units have been dispatched to help with rescue operations, top government spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters, adding that authorities were still assessing the extent of the damage.
More strong quakes in the area, where seismic activity has been simmering for more than three years, could occur over coming days, JMA official Toshihiro Shimoyama said.
In comments to the press shortly after the quake struck, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also warned residents to prepare for more disasters.
"Residents need to stay on alert for further possible quakes and I urge people in areas where tsunamis are expected to evacuate as soon as possible," Kishida said.
"Run!" a bright yellow warning flashed across television screens advising residents in specific areas of the coast to immediately evacuate their homes.
Images carried by local media showed a building collapsing in a plume of dust in the coastal city of Suzu and a huge crack in a road in Wajima where panicked-looking parents clutched their children. There have been reports of at least 30 collapsed buildings in Wajima, NHK reported, citing the city's fire department.
The quake also jolted buildings in the capital Tokyo, some 500 km from Wajima on the opposite coast.
More than 36,000 households had lost power in Ishikawa and Toyama prefectures, utilities provider Hokuriku Electric Power (9505.T) said.
High speed rail services to Ishikawa have been suspended while telecom operators Softbank (9434.T) and KDDI (9433.T) reported phone and internet service disruptions in Ishikawa and Niigata, according to their websites.
Japanese airline ANA (9202.T) turned back planes headed to airports in Toyama and Ishikawa, while Japan Airlines (9201.T) cancelled most of its services to Niigata and Ishikawa regions and authorities said one of Ishikawa's airports was closed.
Japan issues tsunami warnings, orders evacuations after earthquakes
Timothy Nerozzi
Japanese authorities issued tsunami alerts and evacuation announcements Monday after a series of earthquakes shook the west part of the main island.
A 7.6 magnitude earthquake was reported around 4 p.m., the strongest of more than a dozen documented by the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Major tsunami warnings were issued for Ishikawa prefecture, while the rest of the country's western coast was also issued less severe warnings.
"Every minute counts. Please evacuate to a safe area immediately," said government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi.
The earthquakes disrupted train lines, cut off power to multiple areas, and ignited fires in residential buildings necessitating emergency response.
The Japanese Self-Defense Force is contributing to disaster relief in multiple prefectures. No deaths have been confirmed from the natural disasters yet.
Meteorologists say there's a possibility for further powerful quakes in the next several days.
The New Year's Day natural disasters raised tsunami concerns across the sea in both North Korea and Russia.
Additionally, South Korea's meteorological authorities announced heightened caution, urging vigilance on the country's eastern coast in case of delayed after-effects.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told the press that an emergency center has been established to collect and disseminate information on the earthquake and tsunami risk as the situation develops.
Tsunami warnings are still in place and evacuation orders are still ongoing.
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