Series of earthquakes strikes several countries, strongest in Japan with magnitude 7

A series of earthquakes struck several countries on the fringes of the globe, the strongest of which occurred in Japan. The Japan Meteorological Agency announced that a magnitude 7.1 earthquake hit the country’s southwest yesterday, causing injuries, building collapses, and fires. The agency issued a tsunami warning, which it lifted less than two hours later. The earthquake occurred on Kyushu island and reached the highest intensity on the Japan Meteorological Agency’s JMA Seismic Intensity Scale.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announced that she had been informed of several injuries, noting power outages, fires in some areas, damage to roads and bridges, and building collapses. Meanwhile, state broadcaster NHK reported that at least 50 people had been taken to hospitals, adding that 12 homes had collapsed. Private television network TBS reported that a large number of people were killed in a shopping center.

In Asia, two earthquakes struck the Shanghai area in northwest China. The China Earthquake Networks Center stated that a magnitude 5.8 earthquake on the Richter scale hit Shanghai County in Shanghai Prefecture yesterday morning at a depth of 10 kilometers. This quake occurred about 18 minutes after a previous magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck the same location, according to the center.

On the other side of the globe, a magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck off the coast of Mexico. The United States Geological Survey reported that the earthquake’s epicenter was at a depth of 35 kilometers and 50 kilometers southwest of the Mexican state of Chiapas. There were no reports of casualties or material damage from the earthquake, and no tsunami warning was issued.