THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
December 9, 2021 at 18:33 JST
Akusekijima island in Toshima, Kagoshima Prefecture, on Dec. 8 (Eiji Hori)
TOSHIMA, Kagoshima Prefecture--A magnitude-6.0 quake jolted an island chain in southern Japan where more than 200 temblors have occurred in recent days.
The Dec. 9 quake off the Tokara islands struck around 11:05 a.m. and had a seismic intensity of upper 5 on the Japanese scale of 7 on Akusekijima island.
There were no immediate reports of injuries.
The Fukuoka District Meteorological Observatory said the focus of the quake was about 20 kilometers below the surface.
No tsunami warning was issued.
Authorities said the quake had an intensity of 4 on Kodakarajima island in the village of Toshima and a reading of 3 in Suwanosejima island, also in Toshima, and the Kasaricho district in Amami.
The island chain that is part of Kagoshima Prefecture has experienced frequent earthquakes since noon of Dec. 4.
In the period up to 11:30 a.m. on Dec. 9, officials said 231 quakes with intensities of 1 or more had been registered. Temblors with intensities of 4 hit Akusekijima island at 11:14 a.m. on Dec. 5 and 10:44 p.m. on Dec. 8.
Experts at the observatory said Akusekijima island experienced a quake of upper 5 intensity for the first time since Oct. 2, 2000.
In April this year, 265 quakes with intensities of 1 or more were recorded in the area. Six of them had intensities of 4.
“I felt a horizontal shaking for a quite long time,” said Tamotsu Yamaki, 68, who runs a hotel on Suwanosejima island in Toshima village.
Yamaki noted that items did not fall from shelves but that the lights shook while the quake was in progress.
He added that it is rare to feel shaking on the island due to quakes and described the experience as “spooky.”
As of noon Dec. 9, Akusekijima island had 64 residents and 12 visiting construction workers.
Of that figure, 73 people evacuated to the elementary and junior high school playground on the island.
A resident informed the village office that “a part of some walking trails had collapsed.”
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