By Onyeanya Ebere Immaculata
No fewer than 470 earthquakes have shaken a remote island chain in southern Japan since Saturday, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), reported on Thursday, urging residents to remain vigilant.
In a statement issued Thursday morning, the JMA said 474 earthquakes had been recorded around the Tokara island chain, located south of Kyushu.
Most of the quakes registered a seismic intensity of at least one on Japan’s seven-point scale – a level that is slightly perceptible to people seated quietly indoors. No major damage has been reported so far.
“Seismic activity has increased. As this region has experienced extended periods of earthquake activity in the past, please be vigilant against earthquakes that may cause strong shaking,” the agency warned.
The largest tremors recorded since Saturday were two magnitude -5.1 earthquakes – one on Sunday and another on Tuesday.
Both registered an intensity of four on the Japanese seismic scale, described as an earthquake in which “most people are startled,” dishes rattle, and “hanging objects such as lamps swing significantly.”
Seven of the 12 Tokara Islands are inhabited, with a total population of around 700 residents. The islands, some of which contain active volcanoes, are accessible by a ferry that operates twice weekly in good weather.
A similar surge in seismic activity occurred in the Tokara region in September 2023, when 346 earthquakes were recorded over a span of 15 days, according to public broadcaster NHK.
Marine volcanology expert and associate professor at Kumamoto University, Hisayoshi Yokose, told NHK that “an earthquake of up to magnitude 6 could take place, so please be vigilant.”
Japan is one of the world’s most seismically active nations, located on the convergence of four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific “Ring of Fire.”
The country experiences approximately 1,500 earthquakes annually, accounting for about 18 percent of the world’s total.
While the vast majority of these quakes are mild, the damage they cause varies depending on location and depth.
More than 400 people died following a massive earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula in central Japan on New Year’s Day 2024.
The disaster caused buildings to collapse, fires to break out, and critical infrastructure to fail during the holiday season.
