A magnitude 6.3 tremor. No damage and no casualties, but authorities warn of the danger of landslides. The quake comes just days after the third anniversary of the Fukushima tragedy.

Tokyo (AsiaNews / Agencies) - A little more than three years after the Great Earthquake that destroyed Japan, this morning ( the 2:06 local time), a strong earthquake caused a wave of panic among residents of the southern part of the country. The quake - magnitude 6.3 - hit the island of Shikoku: There are no casualties and no serious damage, but 17 people were injured more or less seriously. The government has warned of the danger of possible landslides caused by aftershocks.

The epicenter of the earthquake was located about 82 kilometers deep. The Japanese Meteorological Agency has ruled out the risk of a tsunami but urged citizens to be on alert. Yohei Hasegawa, director of the Agency's earthquakes and tsunami sector said: "We fear the danger of rockfalls and landslides has increased ".

Just three days ago, the entire nation of Japan came to a standstill for one minute at 14:46 local time in memory of the estimated 18 thousand casualties caused by the earthquake and tsunami that struck the Sendai area on March 11, 2011. The natural disaster also caused serious damage to the Fukushima nuclear power plant and opened a long debate on the national use of atomic energy. At the moment more than 270 thousand people are still living in emergency shelters, and the road of reconstruction still seems very long.

 

• japan
• earthquake
• tremor
• landslide
• anniversary
• fukushima