TOKYO and LONDON — A magnitude 7.1 earthquake rocked southern Japan on Tuesday, prompting the Japan Meteorological Company to difficulty a tsunami advisory for the coasts of the Ariake Sea and the Yatsushiro Sea.
The earthquake struck Kyushu island, within the Kumamoto Prefecture, shortly earlier than 4:30 p.m. native time, based on the U.S. Geological Survey.
The quake was about 6 miles beneath the island, which is the southernmost of the principle Japanese islands, based on native and U.S. climate officers.
Reporters watch the information displaying a big quake and doable one meter tsunami wave in Southern Japan, from an workplace in Tokyo on July 28, 2026.
Andrew Caballero-reynolds/AFP through Getty Photos
The rumbling lasted for a couple of minute, based on Japan’s NHK information, which broadcast photos of obvious smoke or hearth close by.
The prefecture’s airport, Kumamoto Airport, in Mashiki, suspended flights all flights shortly after the quake, based on a notice posted on its web site.
The outside wall of a store is seen collapsed in an earthquake, in Kumamoto Metropolis on July 28, 2026.
JIJI Press/AFP through Getty Photos
Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority mentioned in an emergency update that it had not recorded “abnormalities” at close by amenities in Ikata, Genkai and Satsumasendai Metropolis.
A number of thousand properties had been with out energy following the quake, NHK reported.
Officers urged individuals to avoid the ocean and the ocean shore. Additionally they warned residents to observe for doable landslides.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks to the media on the Prime Minister’s Workplace, in Tokyo after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake hit southern Japan on July 28, 2026.
JIJI Press/AFP through Getty Photos
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi mentioned robust shaking might be felt in each metropolis of Uki and the city of Hikawa. She warned of potential tsunamis of a couple of meter, or simply over 3 toes, close to the Ariake and Yatsushiro seas.
“I urge residents in areas that skilled robust shaking to stay vigilant towards the opportunity of additional earthquakes of comparable magnitude,” she mentioned in a statement posted in Japanese on social media.
ABC Information’ Joe Simonetti contributed to this report.
