An image posted online by The Exchange Post shows merchandise scattered from shelves at the Misawa Air Base Army and Air Force Exchange Service, Japan, by an earthquake Dec. 8, 2025. (The Exchange Post)
Misawa Air Base, a shared U.S. and Japanese fighter base in northeastern Japan, was spared serious damage from a magnitude 7.6 earthquake that struck the area this week.
“Misawa Air Base sustained only minor, superficial damage to a few facilities, and no injuries were reported,” Air Force Capt. LeeRoy Stark, a spokesman for the 35th Fighter Wing, said by email Thursday.
The earthquake rumbled through northeastern Honshu, the largest of Japan’s four main islands, starting at 11:26 p.m. Monday, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Photos posted on social media showed shelves at the base commissary and exchange littered with fallen merchandise.
At least 33 people were injured on Hokkaido and in Iwate and Aomori prefectures on Honshu, according to Japan’s public broadcaster NHK.
“The base’s robust infrastructure and preparedness measures ensured continuity of operations throughout the event,” Stark said.
At the Army and Air Force Exchange Service main store at Misawa, merchandise was knocked off shelves onto the sales floor, and several ceiling tiles were dislodged, according to a post Wednesday on The Exchange Post website. The store delayed opening until 11 a.m. Tuesday to allow for cleanup and safety precautions, according to the post.
The meteorological agency lists the quake as magnitude 7.6 with a maximum seismic intensity greater than six out of seven. That means people had trouble standing, unfixed furniture moved and objects fell, according to an agency chart.
Afterward, the agency issued a “megaquake” advisory for the same area, advising residents to prepare for the likelihood of another strong quake.
A magnitude 7 or greater earthquake along the offshore Japan and Chishima trenches increases the possibility of a large earthquake to follow, according to a post on the agency website. The probability of another event, “based on actual worldwide records” is about one in 100, according to the post.
Stark said Misawa Air Base was prepared for another round.
“Our mission readiness remains fully intact, and the safety of our Airmen, families, and local community continues to be our highest priority. The 35th Fighter Wing stands ready to execute its mission at all times, regardless of earthquakes, tsunamis, or other natural hazards,” he said by email.
The Monday quake epicenter was in the Pacific Ocean about 50 miles off the coast of Aomori.
The agency issued tsunami alerts for the Pacific coast to the island of Hokkaido, north of Honshu and later confirmed a wave of more than two feet came ashore in places.
Japan is an earthquake prone country, and large temblors are part of life.
On Jan. 1, 2024, a 7.3 magnitude earthquake hit the Noto Peninsula in western Honshu, killing 698 and injuring approximately 1,400, the meteorological agency said at that time.
That earthquake was dwarfed by Japan’s Tohoku region event in March 2011. That magnitude 9.0 quake generated a devastating tsunami and subsequent aftershocks that killed nearly 20,000 people with more than 2,500 missing and extreme damage to coastal cities.
AloJapan.com