Powerful 7.1-magnitude earthquake hits southern Japan; tsunami advisory issued

A powerful 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck Japan’s southern Kyushu region on Tuesday, prompting tsunami warnings and emergency alerts across several prefectures, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA).The JMA said the preliminary 7.1-magnitude quake struck Kumamoto prefecture on Kyushu, Japan’s southern main island, at a depth of 10 kilometres beneath the seabed. It issued a tsunami warning for waves of up to one metre (3.28 ft) following the earthquake.The Japanese government activated emergency earthquake warnings for Kumamoto, Nagasaki, Kagoshima, Fukuoka, Saga, Oita and Miyazaki prefectures, all on Kyushu island.The tsunami warning covered Ariake Bay on the western coast of Kumamoto, around 900 kilometres southwest of Tokyo. The US Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was no risk of a tsunami beyond local coastlines.There were no immediate reports of casualties or major damage. Authorities continued to assess the impact as emergency response teams monitored coastal areas, transport links and other infrastructure. The JMA said the earthquake’s magnitude and tsunami estimates were preliminary and could be revised as additional seismic data became available.Authorities urged residents in affected coastal areas to remain vigilant and follow official evacuation and safety instructions, warning that aftershocks could continue in the coming hours.Kyushu has experienced devastating earthquakes in the past. In 2016, a series of powerful quakes centred in Kumamoto killed more than 50 people, injured around 1,800 and destroyed tens of thousands of homes, making it one of Japan’s deadliest seismic disasters in recent years.