A 6.6-magnitude earthquake in the western Pacific Ocean on Thursday evening triggered tsunami waves of up to 30 cm in at least one of the Izu Islands.
The quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometers near Torishima around 11 a.m. The weather agency issued a tsunami advisory and initially predicted waves of up to 1 meter for the remote chain of islands south of Tokyo.
The advice has since been cancelled.
People in coastal areas and near river mouths have been advised to retreat to higher ground.
“A 1 meter wave may not seem significant. But facing such a wave is very dangerous and it can sweep you off your feet,” a Meteorological Agency representative told a news conference.
The tsunami was originally predicted to hit the Izu Islands at various times, including Hachijo-jima at 11:50 a.m. and Izu Oshima at noon. A 30 cm tsunami was reported at Hachijo-jima (Yane) at 12:17 p.m., although the agency said it could have been higher elsewhere.
The Meteorological Department has warned that there is a 10% to 20% chance of an earthquake of similar magnitude. The public has been asked to be vigilant for the next one week.
According to the agency, seismic activity was observed throughout the past week in the same area of the western Pacific Ocean, starting Monday and ending with Thursday morning’s quake. Other earthquakes above the Richter scale were also observed in recent days.
So far, there has been no unusual volcanic activity as a result of Jupiter’s earthquake, although cloud cover makes this difficult to confirm. Over the past week, aerial observations by the Japan Coast Guard have also shown no unusual activity.
In 2006, an earthquake of similar magnitude occurred near the island of Torishima, causing a 16 cm tsunami to reach Miyake-jima. This is the first time a tsunami warning has been issued for the Izu Islands 2022 Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcanic eruption and tsunami.
