A major earthquake struck off the coast of Japan early Tuesday causing a small tsunami.
The 6.9 magnitude quake struck around 6 a.m. local time, 6.2 miles deep and 52 miles east-northeast of Miyako, Japan.
The quake did not initially cause a tsunami warning from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center and an advisory from the Japan Meteorological Agency was quickly cancelled. However, residents of Iwate Prefecture reported a tsunami of about three feet in height.
No significant damage was reported as a result of the small tsunami.
Iwate Prefecture is a rural area with a total population around 1.3 million. A nuclear power plant in the region reportedly had no damage. Local train lines have suspended operations until the tracks can be examined for damage.
The location of the quake was on the Pacific Ring of Fire.
A magnitude 6.7 earthquake rattled Japan late Saturday night leaving crumpled homes and dozens injured.
Aftershocks continued to shake the area and villagers fled their homes to shelters after at least 50 homes collapsed after the initial quake. Officials say that because the homes are built to withstand feet of heavy snow in the winter, it kept more homes from collapsing.
However, the homes that fell resulted in broken bones after heavy furniture fell on residents as they slept on their tatami floors.
The quake, which struck just west of Nagano at a depth of 3 miles, struck along a very active fault according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Officials say most of the residents of the area are elderly and that younger residents are working to care for those who were injured and who lost their homes.
Witnesses across the eastern part of the U.S. and in western Japan both reported seeing fireballs in the sky on Monday night.
NASA says reports of the meteor have been registered from South Carolina to Chicago.
Most of the reports describe the meteor as “greenish to white” colored as it crossed the sky. The reports covered over an hour between the initial reports on the east coast and the times the fireball was spotted in the Chicago area sky.
The American Meteor Society said they are investigating over 200 reports connected to the meteor and that no one has reported any impact from the sight.
Meanwhile, in western Japan, witnesses say a “fireball” roared across the sky Monday night. Various security cameras were able to capture what appears to be a strong green light or a faint orange light tracking across the sky.
Scientists say any fragments from that meteor would have ended up in the sea.
A major earthquake shook northern Japan on Saturday.
The magnitude 6.3 quake struck around 12:35 p.m. local time under the ocean about 400 miles north northeast of Tokyo. The quake was 8.4 miles underground and did not produce a tsunami.
Because of the location of the quake, only a small amount of damage and minor injuries were reported.
Meanwhile, Japan’s nuclear regulatory commission said that the tsunami in 2011 was the cause of the damage and meltdown of the Fukushima nuclear power plant. The massive earthquake did not cause enough damage to launch the plant into a meltdown.
The plant also announced last week they had made improvements that would now require an 89 foot wave to cause damage.
Typhoon Vongfong has roared into Japan leaving a trail of flooding, damage and death.
The storm struck the Kyushu, Shikoku and Honshu prefects on Monday. At least one person is missing and presumed dead and 61 people were injured in the initial waves of the storm.
The storm struck on the last day of a three-day holiday weekend. The city of Shizuoka ordered 212,000 households making up over 506,000 people to leave ahead of the storm.
Railway service across the nation was suspended in preparation for the storm.
The storm is weakening rapidly as it moves across the nation; it had been downgraded to Tropical Storm status around noon eastern time.
The year’s most powerful storm is focusing on Okinawa.
Japan, which has been recovering from a strike from Typhoon Phanfone last week that dumped heavy rain and battered the country with high winds, is directly in the path of Typhoon Vongfong.
Vongfong is classified as a “Super Typhoon” and is over open water. The Hawaii-based Joint Typhoon Warning Center says the storm has sustained winds of 179 miles per hour and gusts over 219 miles per hour. Forecasts say the sustained winds will strengthen to 190 miles per hour at the storm’s peak.
Vongfong is the sixth “Super Typhoon” in the Pacific this year. While the storm season has seen half the usual amount of storms, the number of Super Typhoons is double the season average.
Japanese officials are concerned about the storm striking so soon after Phanfone, which disrupted air and sea travel, led to the disappearance of two American soldiers and forced suspension of searches for bodies on Mount Ontake.
The death toll in the Mount Ontake eruption is the worst for Japan in 88 years.
Military rescue units reported finding more bodies buried in ash, bringing the death toll to 47. The searchers were called down from the mountain after the discovery after a discovery of poisonous gasses and fears the mountain was about to explode again.
The mountain had been covered with climbers and hikers who were looking at the fall colors of the leaves when the unexpected eruption blanketed the area with ash. Hundreds were injured in some way by the blast and also breathing issues from the ash.
Witnesses said that there was no warning at all before the mountain erupted.
The death toll is the worst since 144 people died in a 1926 eruption on the island of Hokkaido.
Japanese officials say at least 36 people are feared dead after the unexpected eruption of Mount Ontake.
Rescuers on the peak say they’ve discovered five more bodies under the grey ash that makes the mountain look like the surface of the moon. The search for victims is being suspended because of fears of toxic gases breaking through the mountain.
At least 12 people are confirmed to be dead with 63 injuries. At least 8 are missing and officials say it’s likely the missing people are dead.
The eruption of the mountain’s over 10,000-foot peak struck when hundreds of climbers were on the mountain. The mountain is a site where families would take children to see the leaves change color or to enjoy the breathtaking views.
Now, the paths on the mountain have ash as much as knee-deep.
The last major eruption of the mountain was in 1979 although there was a minor eruption seven years ago.
Japan’s Metrological Agency said they might reconsider their surveillance system for volcanoes.
While the islands of Japan are still dealing with a weakening Typhoon Neoguri, which continues to dump heavy rain across the country, they are now dealing with the fallout of a 6.8 magnitude earthquake.
A tsunami advisory was issued for the area with waves increasing up to a meter in height. Local officials say the currents in rivers and oceans have reached dangerous levels and are telling residents to stay out of the water.
The quake was centered about five miles deep and off the shore of Fukushima, the site of the catastrophic nuclear meltdown in 2011. No damage has been reported at the plant and no release of additional radiation beyond that which has been leaking for the last three years.
Most of Japan has been dealing with massive flooding from Typhoon Neoguri, which struck the island days ago with wind gusts over 155 miles per hour. Three people have been confirmed dead from the storm with hundreds injured. One of the dead was confirmed to be a 12 year boy who died when his home was buried in a mudslide.
Typhoon Neoguri slammed Japan’s southern islands, and is now on a war path to the mainland.
Although the storm will no longer be called a super typhoon by the time it reaches the mainland, residents should still expect heavy rain, wind damage, power outages, and flooding Wednesday and Thursday.
“I’m calling the heads of municipalities not to hesitate in issuing evacuation warnings and don’t be afraid of being overcautious, “ said Keiji Furuya, the state minister in charge of disaster management.
Brg. Gen. James Hecker warned residents to take serious precautions.
“During the typhoon, do not go outside…anything not tied down, even small items, could become deadly projectiles.”
