Great Earthquake on New Year’s Day

A great earthquake hit Noto Peninsula in the afternoon of new year’s day in 2024. Causing collapse of buildings and houses or large fire, the quake brought about many victims still uncountable. While Prime Minister Fumio Kishida tries to take a good leadership in rescuing the victims and helping the refugees, it made a serious issue for the ailing administration with the slush money scandal. Kishida can make no mistake in handling the disaster recovery.

Japan Meteorological Agency announced that a major earthquake with magnitude 7.6 occurred in the northern part of Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture on 16:10 p.m. on January 1st. The location of seismic center was supposed to be 30 km north of Wajima city and had 16 km of depth from the land surface. It marked the highest level 7 of intensity in the town of Shika, The cities of Kanazawa and Niigata recorded level 5. A lot of aftershocks were acknowledged in Ishikawa and other prefectures around.

 

Ishikawa prefectural government confirmed eight deaths by 9 a.m. on January 2nd and the reported victims are increasing hourly. JMA issued the warning of great tsunami in the coastal area of Ishikawa and around, and some cities marked about 1 meter rise of sea level. But the news reports do not indicate that tsunami took people or houses away.

 

TV programs reported collapse of buildings and houses by the quake, which might have caused some deaths under the debris. A major fire was seen in the city of Wajima, where is known as producing Japanese lacquer ware. A broad area suffered from blackout and water supply was stopped in many cities. Railways and air transport were paralyzed. Although the helps for food, water and commodities are on the way, broken roads block the approach of the trucks and cars to the cites where many evacuees wait for them.

 

Kishida held a press conference in Tokyo on the day after. He announced that he established the emergency disaster management headquarters, headed by the prime minister. “Under my leadership, I will let the self-defense force, coast guard, fire departments and police completely communicate each other,” said Kishida. He promised to push the necessary supports out to the devastated area and to have close communication with local leaders for collecting information. Personnel in Air Self-defense Force were dispatched to rescue the people from the collapsed buildings or to transport the patients in hospitals.

 

There are several nuclear power plants in the coastal area of the Japan Sea, including Noto Peninsula. Shika Town, which marked the biggest intensity of the quake, has Shika Nuclear Power Plant owned by Hokuriku Electric Power Company. There was a report that the people in the plant heard a sound of explosion and burnt smell in the reactor #2 and a transformer lost supply of outer electricity. The equipment was needed for keeping used nuclear fuels cool. It reminded of the disaster of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, which was caused by losing outer electricity. Cooling water of the reactor #1 of Shika plant overflew from the pool to the floor by the quake.

 

Shika plant could maintain its facility by alternative power source for emergency and Nuclear Regulation Agency and the Cabinet Office decided that the possibility of inviting severe situation had gone away. Nuclear power plants in Japan are concentrated to the coastal area of the Japan Sea. Experts indicate the existence of major and long faults underground of the area. Although no serious accident has been reported in the nuclear power plants, including Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, Oi, Takahama, Mihama or Tsuruga, the earthquake reminded of the vulnerability of the plants to possible disaster.

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