Japan lifts one-week earthquake alert after powerful M7.5 quake

The advisory was lifted at midnight on Monday. While residents are no longer being asked to stay ready for immediate evacuation, authorities continue to urge the public to remain vigilant and maintain disaster preparedness measures, including stocking emergency supplies.

The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) had issued the alert for the first time under a special advisory system, covering 182 municipalities across seven prefectures stretching from Hokkaido to Chiba, east of Tokyo, after assessing an elevated risk of another major quake.

Although no megaquake occurred during the advisory period, seismic activity remained elevated. By 2 p.m. Monday, the JMA recorded 40 earthquakes registering intensity 1 or higher on Japan’s seven-point seismic scale.

The initial earthquake struck late on Dec. 8 off the eastern coast of Aomori Prefecture at a depth of 54 kilometers. The quake prompted tsunami warnings for parts of Hokkaido, Aomori, and Iwate prefectures. According to government figures, 46 people were injured, while Kyodo News reported that more than 9,000 residents evacuated following the disaster.

On Dec. 9, bullet train services on the Tohoku Shinkansen Line were temporarily suspended between Morioka and Shin-Aomori stations, and more than 300 schools were closed for a day.

The alert system, officially known as the “Off the Coast of Hokkaido and Sanriku Subsequent Earthquake Advisory,” was introduced in December 2022. It was developed based on lessons learned from the devastating magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami that struck northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011, followed by a magnitude 7.3 aftershock. The advisory does not mandate precautionary evacuations.

An opposition lawmaker has pointed out that following the issuance of the advisory, "residents of the area did not know how they should prepare" during such situations.

This marked the first major disaster response under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s administration, which was launched in October. However, an opposition lawmaker criticized the response, noting that many residents were uncertain about how to prepare following the advisory’s issuance.

Prime Minister Takaichi, who currently resides in housing for lower house members in Tokyo’s Akasaka district, has announced plans to move into the residence near the prime minister’s office to strengthen crisis management capabilities.

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is set to pay an official visit to Japan on 18–20 December, 2025.