The Japan Meteorological Agency
recorded a Magnitude 6.6 Earthquake at a depth of about 10 km, about in central Tottori Prefecture on Honshū Island, slightly after 2.05 pm Japan Standard Time (slightly after 5.05 am GMT) on Friday 21 October 2016. Seven people have reportedly been injured following the event, one of whom is described as being in a serious condition, with two house collapses and damage to several other buildings also reported. About 40 000 were left without power following the event, and train services were suspended until the lines could be confirmed to be safe. people have reported feeling it across much of southern Honshū, as well as on the neighbouring islands of Shikoku and Kyūshū.
Damage to the facade of a building following the 21 October 2016 Tottori Earthquake. AP.
Japan has a complex tectonic environment with four plates underlying
parts of the Islands; in addition to the Pacific in the east and the
Othorsk in the North, there are the Philippine Plate to the south and the
Eurasian Plate to the West. The southwestern arm of Honshū Island lies at the northeast end of
the Ryukyu Island Arc, which sits on top of the boundary between the
Eurasian and Philippine Plates. The Philippine Plate is being subducted
beneath the Eurasian Plate, along the Ryukyo Trench, to the Southeast of
the Islands. This is not a smooth process, with the two plates
continuously sticking together then breaking apart as the pressure builds
up, leading to frequent Earthquakes in the region.
The movement of the Pacific and Philippine Plates beneath eastern Honshu. Laurent Jolivet/Institut des Sciences de la Terre d'Orléans/Sciences de la Terre et de l'Environnement.
Witness
accounts of Earthquakes can help geologists to understand these events,
and the structures that cause them. The international non-profit
organisation Earthquake Report is interested in hearing from people who may have felt this event; if you felt this quake then you can report it to Earthquake Report here.
The approximate location of the 21 October 2016 Tottori Earthquake. Google.
See also...
Eruption on Mount Aso, Kyūshū Island, Japan. The Japan Meteorological Agency has reported a major eruption on Aso (or Asosan) a volcanic caldera on
central Kyūshū Island, Japan. The volcano erupted early on the morning
of Saturday 6 October 2016...
Magnitude 4.2 Earthquake in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. The Japan Meteorological Agency
recorded a Magnitude 4.2 Earthquake at a depth of about 30 km, about 6
km off the coast of the Chiba Peninsula on Honshū Island, at about 1.10 am on Wednesday 3 August 2016 Japan
Standard Time (about 4.10 pm...
Magnitude 4.5 Earthquake in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. The Japan Meteorological Agency recorded a Magnitude 4.5 Earthquake at a depth of about...
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