Tsunami hits coastal areas; authorities warn of aftershocks in northeast Japan

Japan was assessing damage Tuesday and cautioning people of potential aftershocks after a latenight 75 magnitude earthquake caused injuries light damage and a tsunami in Pacific coastal communitiesAt least 33 people were injured one seriously the Fire and Disaster Management Agency saidMost of them were hit by falling objects public broadcaster NHK reportedPrime Minister Sanae Takaichi told reporters an emergency task force was formed to urgently assess damageWe are putting peoples lives first and doing everything we can she saidAt a parliamentary session Tuesday Takaichi pledged the government would continue its utmost effort and reminded people they have to protect their own livesThe 75 magnitude quake struck around 1115 pm in the Pacific Ocean around 80 kilometers 50 miles off the coast of Aomori the northernmost prefecture ofJapans main Honshu island The US Geological Survey measured the quake at 76 magnitude and said it occurred 44 kilometers 27 miles below the surfaceA tsunami of up to 70 centimeters 2 feet 4 inches was measured in Kuji port in Iwate prefecture just south of Aomori and waves up to 50 centimeters struck other communities in the region the Japan Meteorological Agency saidNHK reported the waves damaged some oyster raftsThe agency lifted all tsunami advisories by 630 am TuesdayChief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said about 800 homes were without electricity and Shinkansen bullet trains and some local lines were suspended in parts of the region in the early hours of Tuesday East Japan Railway said it is aiming to resume bullet trains in the region later TuesdayPower was mostly restored by Tuesday morning according to the Tohoku Electric Power CoAbout 480 residents sheltered at Hachinohe Air Base and 18 defense helicopters were mobilized for a damage assessment Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi saidAbout 200 passengers were stranded for the night at New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido NHK reportedPart of a domestic terminal building was unusable Tuesday after parts of its ceiling cracked and fell to the floor according to the airport operatorThe Nuclear Regulation Authority said about 450 liters 118 gallons of water spilled from a spent fuel cooling area at the Rokkasho fuel reprocessing plant in Aomori but that its water level remained within the normal range and there was no safety concernNo abnormalities were found at other nuclear power plants and spent fuel storage facilities the NRA saidJMA cautioned about possible aftershocks in the coming days It said there is a slight increase in risk of a magnitude 8level quake and possible tsunami occurring along Japans northeastern coast from Chiba just east of Tokyo to HokkaidoThe agency urged residents in 182 municipalities in the area to monitor their emergency preparedness in the coming week reminding them that the caution is not a prediction of a big oneMondays quake occurred just north of the coastal region where the magnitude 90 quake and tsunami in 2011 killed nearly 20000 people and destroyed the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plantYou need to prepare assuming that a disaster like that could happen again JMA official Satoshi Harada saidSmaller aftershocks were continuing TuesdayThe US Geological Survey reported a magnitude 66 and later a 51 quake in the hours after the initial temblorThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever