A huge 7.5-magnitude hit north-eastern Japan earlier this week and left around 30 people injured.
The ‘megaquake’, which struck on Monday at around 11.15pm local time, was followed by tsunami warnings, with officials initially concerned the country could face a maximum 10ft tsunami.
The epicentre of the tremor was off the east coast of Aomori Prefecture, with Japan’s Meteorological Agency reporting it was located approximately 33 miles deep beneath the seabed.
In the end, the waves only reached around 2.2 feet in some areas and the aftermath wasn’t as bad as authorities first expected.
However, following the earthquake, public transport was suspended temporarily by East Japan Railway and flights were cancelled at New Chitose airport.
Some 90,000 locals were asked to evacuate and around 2,700 homes were left without power, too.
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) downgraded the advisories in the early hours of yesterday morning before lifting them completely.
Currently, there is no ‘major tsunami warning, tsunami warning or advisory’ in place by the JMA.
A collapsed road after a huge 7.5-magnitude hit north-eastern Japan earlier this week and left around 30 people injured
But there is a chance another earthquake could hit and a JMA official said: ‘There is a possibility that further powerful and stronger earthquakes could occur over the next several days.’
The UK Foreign Office issued the following statement: ‘All tsunami advisories have been lifted following a 7.5 magnitude earthquake off Aomori prefecture on 8 December.
‘However, the Japan Meteorological Agency has warned of the possibility of another follow-up large-scale earthquake over the next 7 days.
‘Follow the advice of local authorities. For further information, read the NHK website.’
With travel to Japan not being completely ruled out by UK officials it may not be possible to cancel your trip due to special circumstances.
It’s recommended holidaymakers check with their travel provider.
Departures and arrivals to New Chitose Airport are showing as running relatively normal on Flight Radar.
After the earthquake hit, a hotel worker in Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture, described scenes of panic with some people injured.
Currently, there is no ‘major tsunami warning, tsunami warning or advisory’ in place by the JMA. Pictured: A worker cleaning up the aftermath of the earthquake in a broken building
He told public broadcaster NHK: ‘There appear to be several injured people, so we have called an ambulance and are currently responding to the situation. Everyone seems to be conscious.’
The shaking ‘first felt like a vertical thrust, then changed to a horizontal one,’ he said.
He added: ‘I was at work at the time and was holding down a shelf that had a lot of things in it. I think the shaking lasted about a minute. Things fell off the shelf, but I don’t think there’s been any damage to the building at this point.’
Footage making the rounds on Japanese television showed shattered glass fragments scattered across roads.
A staff member of the Disaster Prevention Division of Hachinohe City Hall in Hachinohe City said: ‘I felt the shaking twice. I was at work when the earthquake occurred.
‘The horizontal shaking continued for about a minute, so much so that I felt I had to hide under my desk, and documents fell off the shelves.’
Prime minister Sanae Takaichi has said the government has put together an emergency task force to examine the extent of the damage.
She said: ‘We are putting people’s lives first and doing everything we can.’
The UK Foreign Office has not warned against non-essential travel to Japan. Pictured: A car stranded on a collapsed road
Japan sits on top of four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’ and is one of the world’s most tectonically active countries. It experiences around 1,500 to 2,000 tremors each year. They often range from mild to severe. A tremor occurs at least every five minutes.
In March 2011, the country recorded a 9.0 magnitude quake, its most powerful. It triggered huge tsunami waves that reached up to 133ft in certain prefectures.
It caused 19,759 deaths, with thousands of people suffering injuries. In January last year, around 691 people were killed after the Noto Peninsula earthquake.
The magnitude 7.6 quake struck at 4:10 local time. The accompanying tsunami, which reached 37ft in some areas, and tremors affected several towns.
AloJapan.com