Massive quake strikes northern Japan,triggers tsunami...

A powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 8.8 struck northeastern Japan on Friday, triggering a massive tsunami that swept away houses and cars in Miyagi Prefecture and killed at least 20 people in Miyagi and four other prefectures.

The 2:46 p.m. earthquake is one of the strongest ever to have occurred in the quake-prone archipelago, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency, with its magnitude surpassing the 7.9 registered in the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake in Tokyo and its vicinity, which killed more than 140,000 people.

A wide, muddy stream was seen moving rapidly across a residential area near Natori River in Miyagi on live TV coverage by public broadcaster NHK, leveling everything in its path. The tsunami also reached Sendai airport, submerging the runway.

The quake measured the highest intensity level of 7 on the Japanese seismic scale in Miyagi. The weather agency initially announced that the quake had an estimated magnitude of 7.9 but revised it upward to 8.4 about an hour later, and revised its estimate again to 8.8 later.

The quake killed at least 20 people and injured many others, not only in Miyagi and its vicinity but also in Tokyo, some 300 kilometers from the prefectural capital of Sendai, where a prolonged and powerful temblor was also felt, as well as strong aftershocks. The Metropolitan Police Department said many people were injured when part of the Kudan Kaikan hall in Chiyoda Ward in central Tokyo collapsed.

The weather agency issued a rare warning of huge tsunami for the Pacific coastal region including Iwate Prefecture. NHK said a large number of cars were washed away into the sea when a tsunami hit Iwate's Kamaishi port.

In Kyodo News' Sendai office, part of the ceiling collapsed and bookshelves and office equipment toppled over. Fires occurred across a wide area, including at an ironworks in Chiba Prefecture.

There are 11 nuclear reactors in nuclear power plants in Miyagi, Fukushima and Ibaraki prefectures, all heavily affected by the quake, and all of the reactors automatically halted operations following it, according to the industry ministry, which said no radioactive leaks have been detected.

A major blackout occurred across a wide area of northeastern Japan. The quake affected the nation's key transportation systems, including Narita airport, which shut its runways for safety checks.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan told an emergency government meeting held following the quake that the government will work on the crisis with its "whole body and soul" and urged citizens to stay calm and act promptly when needed.

More than 20 people died and numerous others were injured in extensive areas in the eastern half of Japan following Friday's powerful earthquake which rocked northeastern and eastern Japan, according to the National Police Agency.

Ten people died due to a quake-triggered tsunami in Iwate Prefecture, while at least one death was reported each in Miyagi, Tokyo, Chiba, Kanagawa, Ibaraki and Tochigi prefectures, according to local officials.

In Takahagi, Ibaraki Prefecture, a woman died when a roof collapsed at a massage parlor, and a person died in the town of Haga, Tochigi Prefecture, after a wall crumbled at a factory.

A 67-year-old man died after being hit in the head by part of a stone wall in Chiba Prefecture, while a woman in her 50s died from injuries when part of the roof of a hall collapsed in Tokyo. Three people were injured due to fire at an oil refinery in Chiba Prefecture, and five people suffered injuries at a steel plant in Chiba city.

More than 40 people are reported to be injured, including four seriously, in Tokyo, local officials said.

source:Kyodo News

Tsunami Alert for New Zealand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Hawaii, and others. Waves expected over the next few hours, caused by 8.9 earthquake in Japan.

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