BREAKING: Magnitude 7.4 earthquake hits off Japan; tsunami alert issued

[Playinghardball]

Source: Associated Press

No more information yet

Read more: BREAKING: Magnitude 7.4 earthquake hits off Japan; tsunami alert issued for ravaged northeastern coast.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

1. Here's a link for you.

http://www.kxan.com/dpps/news/international/magnitude-7point4-quake-hits-off-japan-wd11-jgr_3767486

[Playinghardball]

3. Thanks

[IScreamSundays]

2. 41 miles E of Sendai, 72 miles E of Fukushima

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usc0002ksa.php

Magnitude
7.4
Date-Time
Thursday, April 07, 2011 at 14:32:41 UTC
Thursday, April 07, 2011 at 11:32:41 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
38.253°N, 141.640°E
Depth
25.6 km (15.9 miles)
Region
NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
Distances
66 km (41 miles) E of Sendai, Honshu, Japan
114 km (70 miles) E of Yamagata, Honshu, Japan
116 km (72 miles) ENE of Fukushima, Honshu, Japan
330 km (205 miles) NNE of TOKYO, Japan
Location Uncertainty
horizontal +/- 13.1 km (8.1 miles); depth +/- 7.2 km (4.5 miles)
Parameters
NST=426, Nph=427, Dmin=358.4 km, Rmss=0.75 sec, Gp= 32°,
M-type=regional moment magnitude (Mw), Version=B
Source
USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)
Event ID
usc0002ksa

[karynnj]

4. OMG - They really can't take any more

[Maine-ah]

5. knr

[IScreamSundays]

6. USGS: No Tsunami Alert (for US) After Japan Quake

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/USGS-tsunami-april-7-119402709.html


The USGS said a tsunami alert has not been issued for the West Coast after quake Thursday off Japan's coast.

The 7.4-magnitude quake was reported about 25 miles under the water off the coast of Miyagi prefecture. A tsunami warning was issued for the coast already ravaged by last months 9.0-magnitude earthquake.

According to the USGS: "A strong earthquake has occurred, but a tsunami IS NOT expected along the California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, or Alaska coast. NO tsunami warning, watch or advisory is in effect for these areas. Based on the earthquake magnitude, location and historic tsunami records, a damaging tsunami IS NOT expected along the California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska coasts. At coastal locations which have experienced strong ground shaking, local tsunamis are possible due to underwater landslides."

[Lorien]

7. Those poor people.

:-(

[Ian David]

8. Stephanie Miller was just saying a tsunami just hit Japan and they evacuated the nuke plant. n/t

[IScreamSundays]

9. I wonder where she is getting the news

I can't find that anywhere

[AnOhioan]

10. The fact that Fukushima Daiichi was exacuated in on CNN

[Ian David]

11. Normally, I would be able to tell you, but her Ustream feed keeps dropping out. n/t

[Lone_Star_Dem]

15. Here you go

Tokyo (CNN) -- A 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck Japan on Thursday, triggering a tsunami warning for one prefecture.

Workers evacuated the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant following the quake, the Tokyo Electric Power Co. said. Tokyo Electric said it has communication with the plant and the power is still on. There were no immediate reports of damage, it said.

The quake's epicenter was off the coast of Miyagi in northeastern Japan, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

Public broadcaster NHK reported a tsunami warning for Miyagi prefecture, saying people in that area should evacuate away from the shore to a safe place.

NHK also reported a tsunami advisory for Iwate prefecture, saying a tsunami is expected to arrive in coastal regions there as well.
http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/04/07/japan.quake/index.html?hpt=T1&iref=BN1

[IScreamSundays]

23. Thanks

I was really wondering about the statement that a tsunami had hit.

[godai]

22. NHK: All tsunami warnings have been lifted. n/t

[industry_]

32. there were no tsunamis and

no reported damage or disruptions at the fukushima nuclear plants.


some power outages, a couple fires, and some minor injuries in more northern cities, but that's about it.

[Ian David]

35. Just heard that on Majority Report just now. Thanks! n/t

[closeupready]

12. Damn.

:(

[felix_numinous]

13. K&R

No not again.

[Poll_Blind]

14. This atheist has been doing a lot of praying lately and here's a little more.

Those poor people. My thoughts are with the men, women, children and elderly who are already desperately trying to survive their previous ordeals and now, this latest one.

PB

[marions ghost]

21. No athiests in foxholes

and this seems like a foxhole all right.

I am meditating on it. Times like this--we should know and believe that we are all one on this fragile planet.

[Dogtown]

55. Debunked.

I've spent some times in foxholes.

Never felt a compulsion to believe in mythology, just kept my ass below ground level.

You can be scared and not become a coward.

[marions ghost]

56. whatever

Am not suggesting you should believe in mythology. But you have to believe in something -- you have faith in your unit, your leader, your momma, whatever. Same thing as believing in God really, as far as the effect on the body physiologically & psychologically. Everyone has faith in something and that is what they visualize at the point of death (if they have time). I have not been in combat but I have been at the point of death. That's all I'm saying. You suddenly stop thinking of your ass and you start thinking about some place above and beyond--immediately. Because we humans want to believe we will be somewhere rather than nowhere, with or without guides in human form.

It's good to be able to function under stress, but under a high degree of stress nobody knows how they will react. Are people who end up with PTSD cowards then??

The statement about foxholes doesn't mean you literally get religion and start saying Hail Marys or the 23rd psalm. But if you did not have a belief system strong enough to last you to that point, you would already be dead by suicide or you would be a zombie with no emotional affect. To face death without praying or with praying--which is more courageous? Aren't they both about the same? Even "hoping" is a form of praying, not to a god, but to all that is good, right, and positive as we know it. I'm not "pro-praying"--I'm just saying that we all have belief, or we could not make it day to day. And life seems more and more like being in a foxhole these days. So many small battles that we have to engage in everywhere now, along with absorbing all the news about big struggles around the world? They all add Stress. We're all in our various foxholes now.

[Dogtown]

60. You seem to be a sincere person.

And I was dealing with some pique from other threads.

I shouldn't have bothered you w/ snark, & I would like to let this subthread fizzle.


Regards,

:hi:

[cleanhippie]

61. Uh, yeah there are. There are PLENTY of atheists in foxholes.

I was one. And there is more.

http://rockbeyondbelief.com/


Try not to post such ignorance and broad-brush insults, ok?

[greiner3]

34. You have an interesting list of comments;

In your profile.

This brings to mind the quote; "Me thinks the lady protests too much."

[Poll_Blind]

42. Yes, Greiner3, all part of my master plan to bring down atheism.

One nation-shattering, world-altering disaster at a time.

:eyes:

PB

[tpsbmam]

44. +1 I felt like someone punched me in the gut when I read that headline

My heart is breaking for Japan right now. Good God, they can't take more.

[florida08]

16. yes just heard this on the car radio

Just as they were getting the leak stopped. Mind numbing catastrophe in the wake of an already ongoing on. Can't even imagine the terror

[IScreamSundays]

19. Imagine the tsunami with all the radioactive material they have

been dumping into the ocean.

[Ian David]

24. "Nuclear Tsunami" sounds like a SyFy Channel Original Movie. n/t

[center rising]

17. According to MSNBC, it was a 7.1

They also report people fleeing to higher ground.

[Hissyspit]

25. @BBCBreaking BBC Breaking News US Geographical Survey website downgrades strength of Japanese earthq

@BBCBreaking
BBC Breaking News
US Geographical Survey website downgrades strength of Japanese earthquake to 7.1, down from 7.4 http://1.usa.gov/gODbps

[godai]

18. Damage appears to be minor.

I'm watching the reports on NHK. There is some power loss in Sendai and other cities to the north. Tsunamis will be small and there's nothing left to destroy where a tsunami might hit. Could slow recovery if areas are reflooded. It's surprising to me that this earthquake is in just about the same location as the big one. But, better that it's there and offshore and not damaging to major cities.

I'd think there could be new cracks in the ground at the Fukushima reactor site, which would be another setback. Otherwise, no new damage at Fukushima has been reported.

This happened at 11:30 pm in Japan, so still dark in the area.

NHK just reported that tsunami warnings have been lifted.

[Myrina]

41. ... what's left to destroy, really?

Of course "damage" is going to be minor in that area. :( Those poor folks, Gawd, how horrible.

[godai]

45. For example, Sendai City with 1 million people.

It's the location of this earthquake, offshore, that should minimize damage. Fifty miles further west could cause a lot of damage. There was a lot of shaking from this earthquake, but I don't think Sendai city had major damage.

[industry_]

52. there's still millions of people living in northern japan.

it's not like the whole area just dropped into the ocean on march 11th.

[benld74]

20. Massive prayers sent,,,

[Hissyspit]

26. Update: NHK is reporting tsunami warnings have been lifted for Japan's coast, although residents are

@thedailybeast
The Daily Beast
Update: NHK is reporting tsunami warnings have been lifted for Japan's coast, although residents are still advised to stay on higher ground.
1 minute ago via CoTweet Favorite Retweet Reply

http://twitter.com/#!/thedailybeast/status/56023969177935872

[Zorra]

27. Oh, no. nt

[FourScore]

28. OMG. The people of Japan must be so traumatized by now! n/t

[redwitch]

36. I was just thinking: A whole country with PTSD

And then I thought about Iraq, Libya, Sudan and how many more? Too many people suffering in this world. I am going down to the town food pantry this afternoon to help sort. Drop in the bucket. Wish I could do more to help everyone who is hurting. But drops add up. More drops please!

[aquart]

48. Drops do add up. You do what you can.

We are moving into a period of constant crisis (of which the idiots running our government seem totally oblivious) which will last beyond our lifetimes. We do what we can.

And even if the most you can muster on a hard day is to smile at someone, that counts, too.

[Ghost Dog]

37. No. Such is not the character of the Japanese people.

USians, on the other hand, do appear to be panic-prone. Apparently as a matter of not only culture, but also government policy: bE aFRAID, BE VERY AFRAID. Attack someone.

[redwitch]

57. Of course they are afraid.

How could they not be afraid and sad and very, very worried. Constant shaking of the ground, thousands of their countrymen dead from the tsunami and the nuclear reactors melting down, no human can withstand that w/o some scarring. I just don't buy it. They are a very stoic people but they are human beings.

[Hissyspit]

29. @AkikoFujita NISA: Nuclear power plant (Tohtsu) in Aomori prefecture's lost external po

@AkikoFujita

NISA: Nuclear power plant (Tohtsu) in Aomori prefecture's lost external power & operating cooling systems on emergency diesel backup power.

11 minutes ago via TweetDeck Favorite Retweet Reply

http://twitter.com/#!/AkikoFujita/status/56022280022654976

[marions ghost]

30. oh ...

x(

[nickyt]

33. "emergency diesel backup power"...deja vu all over again - totally mindblowing to

read this - oh please let them have LOTS and LOTS of diesel on hand, and/or may the power come back on N O W, and I mean right freakin' NOW

[AtheistCrusader]

38. Dai-ichi failed because either the diesel generators themselves were

swamped by the tsunami, or the cooling systems they were connected to failed due to the tsunami, and the diesels overheated.

Still not clear on which, and we probably won't know till they have these reactors totally quenched, shutdown and plugged.

[nickyt]

47. I guess I'm thinking of some backup backup pumps they were using - which then ran out of fuel?

sorry, all these weeks of info have turned my brain to mush -

Anyway, I know we all hope this "new" plant with no power survives w/no major snafus -

[AtheistCrusader]

50. Yeah, on day three, Reactor 2 was 'under control' until

about 2am, the temporary/portable Diesel that was powering the pumps ran out of fuel for 4 hours.

Then reactor 2 started building up towards it's hydrogen explosion. And it was the worst of the bunch. It's containment was damaged, in the Suppression Pool, the large torus at the bottom of the reactor containment housing.

What a mess...

[AtheistCrusader]

51. Yeah, on day three, Reactor 2 was 'under control' until

about 2am, the temporary/portable Diesel that was powering the pumps ran out of fuel for 4 hours.

Then reactor 2 started building up towards it's hydrogen explosion. And it was the worst of the bunch. It's containment was damaged, in the Suppression Pool, the large torus at the bottom of the reactor containment housing.

What a mess...

[PatSeg]

40. Multiple plants lost external power

http://cryptogon.com/?p=21673

[Ghost Dog]

43. As long as diesel power is running, should be no problem.

Behind the diesel generators, there should be at least eight hours worth of battery backup.

Just like at your Minutemen silos complexes.... uh....

(BTW, I'm a bit surprised I haven't yet seen a wave of Japan UFO reports... but then I only pay attention to the more credible sources (where, indeed, occasionally, such reports are to be found)).

[Viva_La_Revolution]

31. NHK now.. Official saying stay alert.. more large aftershocks possible

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/

[ELY08]

39. Did they issue Radioactive Tsunami Warning?????

Just asking

[AsahinaKimi]

46. kuso!

warui desuyo! mou ii yo!! わうりですよ! もういいよ!
(bad) (enough, already..)

[Mitchs Mule]

49. This is Devastating !!! Imagine a Tsunami close to Tokyo !!!

It's very possible and it's more than politics. Human life is so fragile That's why your Family is so important ! NO doomsday just reality.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

53. Tokyo is unlikely to get a tsunami from any earthquake centered in the north

If you look at a map, you can see that it's sheltered by the Boso Peninsula, which COULD be in grave danger. The southern limit of the major damage from the March 11 tsunami was near the northern part of the Boso Peninsula.

An earthquake originating in the south, say in the Izu or Ogasawara Islands, could generate a tsunami that would be funneled into Tokyo bay and cause great damage in major population centers, particularly central Tokyo (Yokohama is more hilly).

[JCMach1]

54. Yeah, Tokyo bay faces south... it is what saved them from the first tsunami

[Art_from_Ark]

58. You are correct

The southern limit seemed to be somewhere near the Ibaraki/Chiba boundary, defined by the Tone River. For example, there was some tsunami damage to an industrial complex in Kashima, on the Ibaraki side, but Choshi and points south and west along the coast on the Chiba side, that is, the Boso Peninsula, seemed to be relatively unscathed.

[ZombieHorde]

59. Japan Hit by Aftershock; Workers Evacuated at Nuclear Plant

Source: Bloomberg

April 8 (Bloomberg) -- Japan was shaken by the biggest aftershock since the day of the March 11 earthquake, leaving two dead and prompting the operator of a stricken nuclear plant to evacuate workers trying to cool radioactive fuel.

The magnitude-7.1 temblor struck at 11:32 p.m. local time yesterday near the epicenter of last month’s quake, the biggest on record in Japan, the U.S. Geological Survey reported on its website. No unusual conditions were observed at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear station north of Tokyo, according to statements from Tokyo Electric Power Co. and Japan’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency.

“Indications of new leakage or a change in radiation levels will be the only way they’ll tell if there’s further damage,” Murray Jennix, a nuclear engineer who specialized in radioactive containment leaks and teaches at San Diego State University, said in a telephone interview. “You’ve got cracks that could have been made bigger.”

More than 90 people were injured in the latest quake, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said, as more than 3.6 million households lost power. Tokyo Electric, the operator of the Fukushima plant 220 kilometers (137 miles) from Tokyo, evacuated 15 workers who were pumping nitrogen into the No. 1 reactor to prevent hydrogen explosions of the type that damaged radiation containment buildings last month.

Read more: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-04-08/japan-hit-by-aftershock-workers-evacuated-at-nuclear-plant.html