ANN/THE JAPAN NEWS – Tsunamis caused by a strong earthquake off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula on Wednesday were recorded in 22 Japanese prefectures, spanning from Hokkaido to Okinawa.

As of 4.30pm yesterday, the Japan Meteorological Agency had lifted all tsunami warnings nationwide.

The highest of 1.3-metres (m) was recorded in Kuji, Iwate Prefecture, as of 10am followed by 0.9m in Sendai Port, Miyagi Prefecture, 0.8m in Hokkaido’s Nemuro, Ibaraki Prefecture’s Kamisu, Tokyo’s Hachijojima Island and other places.

The Fire and Disaster Management Agency’s tally as of 9am yesterday found that evacuation directives were issued for 172,503 people from 83,669 households in 99 municipalities of 21 prefectures.

The number of evacuees dropped along with warnings being switched to advisories. At one point in Hokkaido about 35,200 people were evacuated in 39 municipalities, but the number reduced as of 7am to 667 people in 18 municipalities.

According to the Hokkaido prefectural government and others, 14 people were injured when fleeing or reported feeling unwell at evacuation centres. An 80-year-old man in Akkeshi fell and likely broke a bone when evacuating, and a 60-year-old woman in Shiraoi was injured while evacuating.

-- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin