Strong Earthquake in Japan's Nagano Injures Dozens, Topples Homes

nagano earthquake

Screenshot of M6.8 Nagano earthquake courtesy ANN News.

An earthquake struck central Japan on Saturday, November 22, injuring 41 people and collapsing dozens of farmhouses, destroying roads, and toppling tombstones in the village of Hakuba in Nagano prefecture.

The magnitude 6.8 earthquake trapped 21 people under collapsed houses, but all were freed and no deaths were reported.

Horinouchi Ward in Hakuba Village. The first floor has totally collapsed.

Hakuba in Nagano Prefecture lies about 200 kilometers northwest of Tokyo, and was the site of the 1998 Winter Olympics.

Following the quake, it was discovered that Hakuba sits atop an active fault line. The shifting ground caused considerable damage to roads and other infrastructure around the village, as well as to cemeteries.

Olympic Avenue has been damaged, so sad. #地震 (earthquake) #白馬 (Hakuba)

The earthquake also caused power outages that affected rapid express trains on routes in different parts of central Japan. Many Twitter users posted about being stuck on shut-down trains.

I wonder if the earthquake is responsible for this? The conductor has announced that a power outage has shut down Shinkansen bullet train service has shut down between Yokohama and Gifu in central Japan.

Twitter users near the earthquake in Nagano posted photos of the aftermath of the temblor:

Oh no! The earthquake has made a huge mess in the liquor aisle!

The aftermath of the earthquake at the Don Quixote discount store in Nagano City.

A total of 53 aftershocks had been recorded by midday Sunday, the Meteorological Agency’s earthquake and tsunami division said. 

3 comments

  • […] 先日、長野県で震度6弱(マグニチュード6.8)の地震が起きた。今回の地震により41人が負傷、54棟が全半壊するなど、被害はこの記事(注:リンク先は英語表記)にある数々の写真が示すように、大きなものだった。 […]

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  • […] Strong Earthquake in Japan’s Nagano Injures Dozens, Topples Homes 1,000 Days Since 2011′s Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami 20 Bitter Voices Rise From Fukushima After Japan’s 2011 Nuclear Disaster Mapping Earthquake Reconstruction in Tohoku, Japan Fukushima: No Place Like Home Earthquake Hits Awaji Island in Japan Evacuate the Children of Fukushima Fukushima’s Children Are Getting Sick Earthquake Debris Disposal Divides Japan After Japan Earthquake, a New Local Newspaper by Citizens Japan: Citizens Respond to New Nuclear Power Policies […]

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