News
Editorial: 10 years after Kumamoto quakes, lessons to reduce disaster damage remain
2+ day, 1+ hour ago (421+ words) April 15, 2026 (Mainichi Japan) It is vital to share the lessons learned from major earthquakes and put them to use in mitigating future disasters. This year marks 10 years since the Kumamoto earthquakes. On April 14 and 16, 2016, earthquakes registering a full 7 on the…...
Japan's seismologists look to 'small tremors' as key to predicting next megaquake
3+ week, 3+ hour ago (477+ words) March 27, 2026 (Mainichi Japan) In 2025, two clusters of seismic activity just north of the 2011 epicenter drew experts' attention. One was a magnitude-6. 9 swarm off northeast Japan's Sanriku coast in November; the other, a magnitude-7. 5 quake off the east coast of Aomori…...
Infrastructure cost in quake-hit northeast Japan 1. 5 times up
1+ mon, 6+ day ago (415+ words) March 11, 2026 (Mainichi Japan) FUKUSHIMA (Kyodo) -- The maintenance costs in fiscal 2024 for infrastructure in northeast Japan, which was hit by a devastating earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 that also triggered a nuclear crisis, were 1. 51 times higher from before the disasters, according…...
Is there a megaquake coming along the Kuril Trench off Japan's Hokkaido?
1+ mon, 2+ week ago (195+ words) March 3, 2026 (Mainichi Japan) Question: What kind of zone is the area off Hokkaido's Pacific coast? Answer: It is an area where, according to the team, major earthquakes have likely occurred roughly every 400 years. Although the exact year is unknown, the…...
Tsunami alert issued for Iwate Prefecture after M6. 7 quake
5+ mon, 1+ week ago (45+ words) BREAKING NEWS: Tsunami alert issued for Iwate Prefecture after M6. 7 quake(Kyodo) Please view the main text area of the page by skipping the main menu. The page may not be displayed properly if the Java Script is deactivated on your…...
Gov't panel revises chance of megaquake in Nankai Trough to 60-90%
6+ mon, 2+ week ago (241+ words) September 26, 2025 (Mainichi Japan) TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The probability of a megaquake occurring in the Nankai Trough within the next 30 years has been revised from 80 percent to a range of around 60 to 90 percent, or higher, Japan's earthquake investigation panel said Friday. The…...
1 in 4 encountered false rumors during disasters: Japan Red Cross survey
7+ mon, 2+ week ago (319+ words) September 3, 2025 (Mainichi Japan) TOKYO -- A recent survey by the Japanese Red Cross Society revealed that one in four people had come across baseless rumors during a disaster. The online survey was conducted in July, ahead of Japan's "Disaster Prevention Day…...
Mt. Shinmoe in southwest Japan blows ash 5, 000 meters high
9+ mon, 1+ week ago (114+ words) July 3, 2025 (Mainichi Japan) MIYAZAKI, Japan (Kyodo) -- Mt. Shinmoe, an erupting volcano in southwestern Japan, was observed blowing an ash plume 5, 000 meters above its crater, the Japan Meteorological Agency said Thursday. Ash from the volcano straddling Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures on…...
Mt. Shinmoe in southwestern Japan erupts, spews plume 5, 500 m above crater
7+ mon, 2+ week ago (122+ words) August 28, 2025 (Mainichi Japan) FUKUOKA (Kyodo) -- Mt. Shinmoe on the southwestern Japan main island of Kyushu erupted Thursday, spewing a plume of ash 5, 500 meters above the crater, a local office of the Japan Meteorological Agency said. The eruption at 4: 53 a. m. sent volcanic…...
M5. 1 quake hits off eastern Japan's Ibaraki Pref. , no tsunami warning
8+ mon, 3+ day ago (121+ words) Please view the main text area of the page by skipping the main menu. The page may not be displayed properly if the Java Script is deactivated on your browser. Japan's National Daily Since 1922 August 14, 2025 (Mainichi Japan) TOKYO (Kyodo) -- An…...