Strong Quake Jolts Southwestern Japan

Tokyo, Nov. 25 (Jiji Press)–A powerful earthquake hit southwestern Japan on Tuesday, measuring up to upper 5, the fourth-highest level on the country’s 10-point seismic intensity scale, in Kumamoto Prefecture. The temblor with an estimated magnitude of 5.8 occurred at a depth of 9 kilometers in Kumamoto’s Aso region around 6:01 p.m., according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. The quake measured upper 5 in the Kumamoto village of Ubuyama and lower 5 in the Kumamoto city of Aso and the city of Takeda, Oita Prefecture, which neighbors Kumamoto to the east. “Earthquakes are likely to occur one after another in that area, so we hope people stay alert for seismic activity of upper 5 or higher for about a week,” Ayataka Ebita, head of the agency’s earthquake and tsunami monitoring division, said at a press conference. The epicenter of the latest quake is located between the Futagawa fault zone, where a 7.3-magnitude earthquake occurred in April 2016, and the Haneyama-Kuenohirayama fault zone in western Oita. Several small earthquakes occurred in the vicinity in the wake of the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake. Following the latest quake, no changes in volcanic activity were detected at Mount Aso, located to the south of the epicenter. In response to the quake, the government set up a liaison office at the crisis management center of the prime minister’s office. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi instructed government officials to swiftly assess the extent of damage and notify the public. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]