Magnitude 7.1 earthquake hits Fukushima

[Art_from_Ark]

Source: Yahoo Japan

Information is in Japanese

Read more: http://emergency.yahoo.co.jp/weather/jp/earthquake/2011-04-11-17-16.html

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Just a few minutes ago, there was a series of three earthquakes in eastern Japan. Here in southern Ibaraki, the first one was strong enough to knock a lot of stuff off shelves. Oh, crap, now there was just a 4th earthquake.

[Mojorabbit]

1. Stay safe! nt

[Art_from_Ark]

3. When I saw the stuff falling off shelves

I headed for the exit.

If it was that bad here, I hate to think of what it was like in Fukushima! Oh, God, those people have suffered enough! :cry:

[TheModernTerrorist]

31. I was working up in Saitama

and it was pretty strong up there too. Nothing like the 11th, but still...

[Art_from_Ark]

32. What was the shindo for your part of Saitama?

They say it was a 6- for this part of Ibaraki. I have my doubts it was that strong here, though, since it didn't cause as much damage as the previous 6- (which was also March 11). But it was still rather nerve-wracking.

[Bosonic]

2. USGS

Magnitude 7.1

Location 36.915°N, 140.723°E
Depth 10 km (6.2 miles) set by location program
Region NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
Distances

23 km (14 miles) SW (223°) from Iwaki, Honshu, Japan
65 km (40 miles) NNE (19°) from Mito, Honshu, Japan
94 km (58 miles) SSE (166°) from Fukushima, Honshu, Japan
164 km (102 miles) NNE (32°) from TOKYO, Japan

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/at00ljhaz3.php#details

[Art_from_Ark]

5. 23km SW of Iwaki

means that it was only about 60km (35 miles) or so from the Daiichi complex :scared:

[Turborama]

4. WaPo: Japan rattled by another 7.1-magnitude aftershock, warning for tsunami issued

By Associated Press, Monday, April 11

SENDAI, Japan — A magnitude-7.1 aftershock has rattled Japan on the one-month anniversary of a massive earthquake that spawned a deadly tsunami.

A warning has been issued for a 3-foot (1-meter) tsunami, the same as after another 7.1 aftershock that shook the northeast coast last week. There was no tsunami after that quake.

People at a large electronics store in central Sendai screamed and ran outside, though the shaking made it hard to move around. Mothers grabbed their children, and windows shook. After a minute or two, people returned to the store.

From: http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/japan-rattled-by-another-71-magnitude-aftershock-warning-for-tsunami-issued/2011/04/10/AFvsZSHD_story.html

[Art_from_Ark]

10. 7 official aftershocks within an hour after the 7.1

Number 8 happening as I type :argh:

[DonCoquixote]

6. Hey, God

It is things like this that make it hard for any thinking person to believe in you.

[uppityperson]

43. You mean the "God" that cares individually about keeping every individual safe?

[Art_from_Ark]

7. More aftershocks

How many does this last one make? 6? 7? I've lost count.

[snagglepuss]

13. Sorry to hear about more quakes. You all are in my thoughts and prayers.

Wishing you comfort and strength during this very difficult time. :grouphug:

[DiverDave]

8. Enough already!

These folks have been through enough.
So, yeah, god, give em a break.

[Hannah Bell]

23. +100.

[BumRushDaShow]

9. Hang in there!!!

:scared: :hug:

[tavalon]

11. Damn, they really, really aren't catching any breaks!

[Art_from_Ark]

14. No, they aren't, are they?

The people of eastern Japan really need a good break. They have gone through so much already.

[dipsydoodle]

15. Tragic isn't it.

Makes me wonder if anyone has given thought to evacuating , if necessary , a chunk of their population.

[Art_from_Ark]

18. Fukushima Prefecture has made contingency plans

The prefecture is making preparations to provide up to 20,000 housing units in other parts of the prefecture to residents of Futaba County, which is the most stricken area.

[dipsydoodle]

21. Well it sure is good to know

that at least one country is well organised in this respect.

[Art_from_Ark]

12. If you are using Safari, and your computer can handle Japanese

copy these Japanese characters 福島県, then go to this web site

http://typhoon.yahoo.co.jp/weather/jp/earthquake/

Then call up the "Find" function and paste them in the Find window. Safari will highlight all the places where "Fukushima Prefecture" is mentioned. If you scroll down about halfway, you can see a list of Japanese earthquakes, starting with the most recent. You can see that the 8 most recent earthquakes in Japan have all been centered in Fukushima. The numbers on the right side of the chart are the strongest Japanese seismic intensity values that were recorded during that particular earthquake.

This chart is an explanation about the seismic intensity values:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Meteorological_Agency_seismic_intensity_scale

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

16. CNN: Revised to 6.6

7.1 was preliminary estimate
http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/04/11/japan.quake/index.html?hpt=T1

[Art_from_Ark]

17. They can call it a 6.6 if they like

but Yahoo Japan is still calling it a 7.1

http://typhoon.yahoo.co.jp/weather/jp/earthquake/2011-04-11-17-16.html

I personally think it was stronger than a 6.6 because the last 6.6 that I experienced, which occurred in practically the same area, did not cause anywhere near the shaking that this last big quake caused in my area.

On edit: Tenki.jp is still calling it a 7.1 as well.

http://tenki.jp/earthquake/entries?p=2

[SkyDaddy7]

19. I always thought "after shocks" decreased with time...

This is not case? I guess not since all the experts are calling these these +7 after shocks despite there have been a mess of 6's as well. Learn something everyday!

Stay safe! As much as that is possible.

[Art_from_Ark]

22. The problem with these "aftershocks" is

that they are occurring in different areas.

I know a few Japanese geologists who have explained it this way:

The original 9.0 megaquake occurred in a subduction zone off the coast of Miyagi Prefecture. The force of that quake has activated other faults, in the subduction zone as well as on land, and some of those faults have the potential for earthquakes of the 7.0 class.

[SkyDaddy7]

41. I see...And Japan does not have a shortage of faults!

thanks!

[SkyDaddy7]

20. I always thought "after shocks" decreased with time...

This is not case? I guess not since all the experts are calling these these +7 after shocks despite there have been a mess of 6's as well. Learn something everyday!

Stay safe! As much as that is possible.

[Baclava]

28. They seem to, but earthquake "science" is in its infancy - any predictions are totally unreliable

Plus, earthquake magnitudes are logarithmic, not linear, the difference between a 7.0 and 9.0 is a thousand times less.

So a magnitude 9.0 earthquake is 100 times bigger than a magnitude 7.0 earthquake on a seismogram, but is 1000 times stronger (energy release).

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/topics/calculator.php

[SkyDaddy7]

42. Right! nt.

[Art_from_Ark]

25. According to NHK, it was a 7.0

NHK showed a video of things being thrown all over the place in its Iwaki Broadcast Center. That was a nasty earthquake.

[Raschel]

39. This one's epicenter was inland too. I just watched a video of people in an office, it looked very

strong.

[Art_from_Ark]

40. Yeah, the epicenter was on the Fukushima side

near the Ibaraki border. There was a series of strong quakes there a couple of weeks ago as well.
That office you saw might have been the NHK Iwaki office-- they really got shaken around.

[Zephie]

24. Damn it!

[proud patriot]

26. Crap , stay safe my Friend

[Art_from_Ark]

46. Thanks for the encouragement

So far, things have been holding up.
Did you have a bunch of aftershocks after the Loma Prieta earthquake?

[EFerrari]

50. Some but not like you're having.

It did go on for days but not as strong.

That's the part I've always hated about quakes. You never know when it's "over".

[Art_from_Ark]

54. Isn't that the truth?

You never know when it's "over". And the longer they last, the more nervous I get.

[EFerrari]

59. Being a little nervous in that situation

is probably the healthy response.

I hope it calms down for you all. Thoughts & wishes.

[proud patriot]

62. I only remember a couple

I've been studying the reccent big quakes around our shared techtonic plate.
The pressure on our Region to quake is HUGE right now. My gut tells me
that within a year maybe 2 we'll be having them with greater frequency
and severity on our side of the plate.

[Art_from_Ark]

64. I hope your gut is wrong

and that you won't have to go through such an awful experience as a mega-earthquake

[madrchsod]

27. i use google translate......

the map is showing a lot of rumbling

[Keith Bee]

29. CNN just said 6.6

[Art_from_Ark]

33. I think the CNN figure is too low.

Sources in Japan, such as Yahoo Japan, Tenki.jp, NHK and Fuji News Network, show it as at least a 7.0

[Generic Other]

30. Crap! Hold on Art! My poor Ibaraki!

I am so sorry to hear you are reliving the one month anniversary with more worries!

Steady friend, steady!

[Art_from_Ark]

35. Yup, your poor Ibaraki is a-moving and a-shaking

News reports say one man in Ryugasaki City in Ibaraki died as a result of the earthquake, and 5 people scattered in 4 other Ibaraki cities were hurt, including one in Tsukuba and one in Ushiku (two cities that border on Tsuchiura). But the quake also caused a landslide in Iwaki (Fukushima) which destroyed 3 houses. And there have been countless aftershocks since then, including a rather nasty one centered in northern Ibaraki. Gyaaaaaaaaa, as they say in Japanese.

[oregonjen]

36. What is the shindo in Ibaraki? 5/6?

[Art_from_Ark]

37. Northern Ibaraki-- 5+

Southern Ibaraki-- 6-

Interesting that it was more intense down here, even though the epicenter was much closer to northern Ibaraki

[Generic Other]

49. The relatives in Ishioka have no power or water

They are putting out pots and pans for rainwater! Yikes! And no rice planting this year. My mom said there is no water which I am not sure how to interpret as they are on a river. We can't ring them up today. Will try again tomorrow. Neighbors say everyone rattled. Feeling a bit isolated. Scared. And eating the vegetables they can't sell. It all sounds so frightening. My mother goes there every year. And now I am frankly afraid to let her go. Poor thing. This is hard on her too.

Hugs to you for keeping us informed!

[Art_from_Ark]

52. Ishioka?

Damn! I had no idea people were without power or water up there. I have heard that things have been pretty rough from Mito northward, but I had thought that things were pretty much returning to normal farther south.

As for the lack of water for rice, that might have something to do with JA's infrastructure. I believe that JA (Japan Agriculture co-op) has some sort of system for distributing irrigation water to rice farmers. Maybe their Ishioka facilities have been compromised by the earthquakes?

At any rate, it sounds like your relatives are really suffering. My sympathies are with your family!

[suffragette]

57. Sorry to hear this

Is there any way to get bottled water and packaged food to them?

[Art_from_Ark]

60. It might be possible for me to help out

If your relatives in Ishioka are in desperate need of water, I might be able to take a case of bottled water and maybe some other things up to them, if that would help.

[Generic Other]

61. You are so kind!

I can't believe the water supplies are so low there. The power went out during yesterday's quake, so maybe the situation is short-term. Of course, it is the whole community that is struggling as it was a neighbor lady who reported the water situation. I am getting reports filtered through a bad English translation -- thanks Mum! ;) -- so all info is sketchy. Will report again as soon as we get hold of the family for sure. I did discover the rice planting problem is related to the cracking in the earth. The water won't flood the paddies. Just drains off. The family owns most of the fields in the area, so the economic blow will be enormous. Most of them have outside jobs these days though. They don't do much of the farmwork themselves anymore. One man with modern machinery can do what the entire community once spent all their time doing.

I am amazed at how many seniors are dependent on so few young people. Will keep you informed. And bless you for your kind offer. Let's hope they do not need to take you up on it yet!

[Art_from_Ark]

44. Here's a picture for you, Generic Other

[Generic Other]

51. Drivers rush past the cherry blossoms in the morning

when they come home the petals will have fallen.

A bit long for a haiku...but I am a wordy American...

[Art_from_Ark]

53. Nice haiku

By the way, the sign on the wall says: "Ganbarou Nihon! Ganbarou Ibaraki!" There are lots of ways that can be translated, but basically it's a rallying cry for the people of Japan in general and Ibaraki in particular.

[suffragette]

34. All too nervewracking

I've been through aftershocks before and they're so frightening. All the fight or flight response kicks in even more quickly and heavily and they take a heavy toll, whether or not there's additional physical damage.
But I've never been through a series as large a magnitude, with so many additional factors an issue or as extended as Japan has been facing.

:hug:

[Art_from_Ark]

45. It hasn't been fun, let me tell you

Last night seemed like almost non-stop aftershocks. I got maybe an hour of uninterrupted sleep. I wonder how others in my area have been coping. People I talk to are trying to keep a stiff upper lip.

[suffragette]

47. I hope they will ease and you can get needed rest tonight

And I hope that for everyone there.
I understand the need to try to keep that upper lip stiff.
But it can also be good to, in the company of people who love you, allow the quiver to break through and to release some of the tension.

[Art_from_Ark]

55. It seems like Generic Other's relatives have it worse than I do

They're just a few miles to the north of me. They don't have power or water, and the shaking might be a little more intense up there.

[suffragette]

56. Is there any way to get assistance to them?

[Art_from_Ark]

58. I guess we'll have to ask Generic Other about that

I don't know enough about their situation, such as road conditions, etc.

[Raschel]

38. Power was out at the Fukishima plant but since restored.

[Art_from_Ark]

48. Now there was just a 6.3 earthquake in Fukushima

approximately 2:10 p.m. local time

http://emergency.yahoo.co.jp/weather/jp/earthquake/2011-04-12-14-07.html

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh

[Art_from_Ark]

63. The 6.3 quake damaged part of the Joban Expressway

A section on the Fukushima side was closed to traffic.

Some many "roadblocks" being thrown in the way of recovery...