WATCH: First scenes as strong earthquakes and tsunami waves hit Japan

People are left standing next to large cracks in the pavement after evacuating into a street in the city of Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture on January 1, after a major 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the Noto region in Ishikawa prefecture in the afternoon. Tsunami waves over a metre high hit central Japan 1after a series of powerful earthquakes that damaged homes, closed highways and prompted authorities to urge people to run to higher ground. Picture: Yusuke FUKUHARA Yomiuri Shimbun AFP

Published Jan 1, 2024

TOKYO

Multiple roads and houses in Japan's Ishikawa Prefecture were damaged after strong earthquakes struck the country’s western coast on Monday, authorities said.

A series of strong earthquakes, some of up to a preliminary 7.6 magnitude, have been hitting a wide area on the Sea of Japan coast in central Japan since Monday afternoon, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA).

Reports from local authorities and firefighting departments said multiple houses collapsed in Noto region and Hakui city in Ishikawa Prefecture. Approximately 32 500 households experienced power outage across Ishikawa Prefecture, they said.

In Ishikawa’s Kanazawa city, video footage taken by passengers showed rocking temblors experienced on a local train platform and train coaches.

Some buildings in the Noto region caught fire, according to latest local media reports.

In Shijika city, Niigata Prefecture, an 80-year-old woman suffered a head injury after falling during the evacuation.

The torii gate of a shrine in Kanazawa collapsed due to the earthquakes, with no injuries reported in the surrounding area, according to the national news agency Kyodo.

East Japan Railway Company suspended all Shinkansen services on the Joetsu and Hokuriku lines throughout Ishikawa Prefecture. There is currently no prospect for resumption of operations, according to sources.

Earlier in the day, the JMA issued tsunami warnings for a broad swath of the western coast, including Ishikawa, Fukui, Niigata, Toyama, Yamagata and other prefectures, following the strong earthquakes.

Badly damaged buildings on a street in the city of Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture on January 1, after a major 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the Noto region in Ishikawa prefecture in the afternoon. Picture: Yusuke FUKUHARA Yomiuri Shimbun AFP

Ishikawa, where the epicentre of the major quake was located, observed tsunami waves of more than 1.2 meters at 4.21pm local time, and Toyama prefecture reported tsunami waves of 50 centimeters at 4.23pm, local media reports said.

Torrents of water could reach as high as 5 meters and authorities had urged people to flee to high land or a top of a nearby building as quickly as possible, according to the public broadcaster NHK.

According to the JMA, among the quakes, the major temblor occurred at 4.10pm local time at a shallow depth, registering a maximum 7 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale on the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture. It also shook buildings in central Tokyo.

Meanwhile, Sputnik reports the recent earthquake in the Japanese prefecture of Ishikawa has become the strongest on the Noto peninsula since 1885 when records started, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said on Monday.

"It was the strongest since 1885," JMA representatives told a press conference.