Scores injured in Japanese quake

Scores injured in Japanese quake

Sunday, March 20, 2005 Posted: 0814 GMT (1614 HKT)



TOKYO, Japan -- A magnitude 7.0 earthquake centered off the western coast of Japan's island of Kyushu has injured at least 155 people and destroyed about two dozen homes, but no deaths have been reported, according to media and government reports.



The hardest hit area appeared to be the small island of Genkaijima, where about 20 homes were destroyed, the government said.

Video from the Fukuoka Prefecture, on the west coast of Kyushu, showed a few cracked sidewalks and parking lots, but no widespread damage.

The television network NHK reported 155 people were being treated at hospitals for injuries related to the quake.

Power and water service to the affected areas has mostly been restored, officials said.

Japan's Meteorological Agency warned of the possibility of 50-centimeter (20-inch) tsunami waves triggered by the seismic activity, and cautioned residents near the water to move to higher ground.

But an hour after the quake, the agency said there was no danger of tsunami, The Associated Press reported.

An hour after the initial temblor, aftershocks -- at least one a magnitude-4.2 quake -- followed.

Local and bullet train railway service was halted, after an automatic safety mechanism was triggered by the tremors, public broadcaster NHK TV. Telephone service in the southern prefecture was overwhelmed and jammed.

Fukuoka airport temporarily closed its runway to assess the extent of any damage, but was reopened after no cracks were found, NHK said.

The network showed tall office buildings and street lamps in the center of Fukuoka city, nearest the epicenter, shaking violently.

The floor and desks at an office was strewn with paper, tapes and other items that has been flung off desks and shelves. Fukuoka is about 899 kilometers (562 miles) southwest of Tokyo.

In residential areas, cracks appeared in sidewalks and parts of retainer walls had flaked off.

The quake was felt as far away as South Korea's port city of Busan, where it was registered at between magnitudes 4 and 6 and briefly shook buildings. No damage was immediately reported, a police spokesman in Busan said on condition of anonymity.

A magnitude-7 quake can cause widespread damage if it is centered in a heavily populated area.

Tsunami are distinguished from normal coastal surf by their great length and speed. A single wave in a tsunami series might be 160 kilometers (100 miles) long and race across the ocean at 960 kph (600 mph).

When it approaches a coastline, the wave slows dramatically, but it also rises to great heights because the enormous volume of water piles up in shallow coastal bays.

On December 26, a 9.0-magnitude quake triggered a massive tsunami that devastated Asian and African coastlines in nearly a dozen nations, killing at least 175,000 people.