5 injured after M5.8 earthquake hits Japan’s Honshu, stronger quakes possible
At least five people were injured after a shallow M5.8 earthquake hit Japan's Honshu island at 16:32 UTC on April 8, 2018 (01:32 JST, April 9). JMA is reporting a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). USGS is reporting this quake as M5.6 and EMSC as M5.7.
The epicenter was located 7.7 km (4.8 mi) NNE of Oda (population 21 285), 8.5 km (5.3 mi) NNE of Ōdachō-ōda (population 31 867), 23.6 km (14.7 mi) WSW of Izumo (population 89 286), 31.5 km (19.6 mi) SW of Hiratachō (population 28 154) and 52.4 km (32.6 mi) WSW of Matsue (population 156 811), Japan.
Some 2.4 million people are living within 100 km (62 miles) and 23 000 within 10 km.
At least 5 people were injured, including a 17-year-old boy who broke his leg after falling from his bed, the Japanese media reported.
Some 100 households lost water and 50 households were left without electricity in the city of Oda, where the government requested the dispatch of a Self-Defense Forces unit to assist in distributing water to affected residents.
Officials confirmed damage to some buildings and cracks in roads.
Although the epicenter is just 50 km (31 miles) south of Shimane nuclear power plant, the owner said there were no abnormalities found at the plant.
JMA urged residents to stay vigilant as more strong quakes are possible in the coming week or so.
"We want the areas that experienced strong tremors to be on guard in the coming week or so against quakes that could be as powerful as the upper five," JMA official Toshiyuki Matsumori said, referring to a Japanese seismic scale with a maximum intensity of seven.
Several strong tremors have already been felt in the region.
Featured image credit: Kyodo
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