Japan, located in the Pacific Ocean region of East Asia, has once again been shaken by the terrible shocks of nature. The powerful earthquake that struck the capital Tokyo and its surrounding eastern areas early on Sunday woke people up from their deep sleep. The initial intensity of the earthquake has been measured at 5.9 on the Richter scale, while the US Geological Survey (USGS) has recorded it at 5.8. 23 people have been injured due to the chaos caused by this sudden shock. However, the biggest relief is that the weather agency has not issued any kind of tsunami warning. The epicenter of the earthquake was at a depth of 70 kilometers in southern Ibaraki. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), the main epicenter of the earthquake was recorded at a depth of about 70 kilometers from the ground in the southern Ibaraki (Ibaraki Prefecture) region. This area is considered extremely sensitive to earthquakes due to its geographical location at the meeting point of tectonic plates. Due to the great depth, there was no devastating destruction on the surface, but the tremors were so strong that multi-storey buildings and residential apartments hundreds of kilometers away, including the capital Tokyo, kept shaking for several seconds. As soon as the emergency earthquake alert sounded on people's smartphones, people panicked and ran towards open places. 23 people injured in sleep disturbance, damage in 4 provinces Local disaster management and emergency services officials have confirmed that a total of 23 people have been injured in earthquake-related incidents in four provinces. Among these, 9 people were injured in Saitama, 9 in Kanagawa, 4 in Chiba and 1 in Ibaraki. Officials said since the earthquake struck early in the morning, most people were in deep sleep. While running away frightened by the sudden strong shock, people collided with furniture, doors and falling objects. An elderly woman over 80 years old fell off her bed in Yokohama city of Kanagawa, suffering a serious hip fracture and was admitted to the hospital. Express trains connecting Tokyo and Narita International Airport and many local commuter rail services in the northeastern region were temporarily halted as part of safety protocols immediately after the earthquake, causing morning commuters to face delays. However, high-speed Shinkansen bullet trains continued to operate normally. Its impact was also seen on civil infrastructure. A main underground water pipeline burst in Koto Ward, Tokyo's eastern ward, causing heavy waterlogging on the road. However, municipal teams repaired the leakage within a few hours and brought the situation under control. About 460 houses in Tokyo lost power, which was later completely restored by TEPCO Power Grid. Government formed special task force, nuclear plant completely safe. Seeing the seriousness of the earthquake, the Japanese government immediately came into action. Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi issued an official statement saying that a special emergency task force has been formed in the Prime Minister's Office to assess the damage and provide immediate assistance to the affected areas. The country's Nuclear Regulation Authority has confirmed that about a dozen nuclear power plants and related nuclear facilities located in the region have been thoroughly inspected and no malfunctions, radiation leaks or abnormal conditions have been reported anywhere. Due to its location in the Ring of Fire, earthquakes occur frequently in Japan. Japan is located on the world's most active seismic zone 'Pacific Ring of Fire', where the Pacific Ocean Plate, the Philippine Sea Plate and the Eurasian Plate collide with each other. This is why about 20% of earthquakes of magnitude 6 or more in the world are recorded in Japan and its surrounding maritime areas alone.
