Japan’s Nuclear Plant During the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake: Emergency Center, Tsunami Warnings, and Central Store Operations

Japan is an extremely quake-prone nation. The nuclear plant was damaged in the March 2011 Tohoku earthquake. Government spokesman Hayashi told reporters that nuclear plants in the affected area had not reported any irregularities on Monday.

The Prime Minister said the government has set up an emergency center to gather information on the earthquakes and send it quickly to residents to ensure their safety.

Tsunami warnings were also issued for parts of North Korea and Russia. Russian officials issued a warning for the west coast of Sakhalin, saying areas could be affected by the waves.

Takashi Wakabayashi, a worker at a convenience store in Ishikawa Prefecture, said some items had tumbled from the shelves, but the biggest problem was the huge crowd of people who had shown up to stock up on bottled water, rice balls and bread.

More big earthquakes are likely to hit the area in the next week or so, according to the Meteorological Agency.

Japan’s tsunami warnings lifted early in the day after the Niigata quake, and at least 15 people died in a muddied coastline

People who were evacuated from their houses huddled in auditoriums, schools and community centers. Bullet trains were halted but service was being restored in a number of places. The highways were closed and some cellphone services were out in some areas.

There was red smoke and people running in the streets after a fire in a residential neighborhood. Photos showed a crowd of people, including a woman with a baby on her back, standing by huge cracks that had ripped through the pavement.

Japan’s military dispatched 1,000 soldiers to the disaster zones to join rescue efforts, Kishida said, stressing they were facing “large-scale damage.” He said details of the damaged homes were still being investigated.

At least fifteen people are dead and many buildings and vehicles are damaged from a series of earthquakes that hit western Japan on Tuesday. Officials in some areas warned people not to return to their homes because of a risk of more strong earthquakes.

A tsunami of about 3 meters (about 10 feet) high was expected to hit Niigata and other prefectures on the western coast of Japan, and the waves were confirmed to have reached parts of the coastline.

NHK said warnings would continue to be broadcast hours after the initial alert. There were several after shocks in the region.

NHK TV warned people to flee to the top of a nearby building or high land as soon as possible because the water could reach 5 meters.

The agency issued a large wave warning for Ishikawa, which is on the western coast of the island of Honshu.

The Japan Meterological Agency reported more than a dozen quakes off the coast of Ishikawa and nearby prefectures shortly after 4 p.m., one of them with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6.

The warning was downgraded several hours later, and all tsunami warnings were lifted as of early Tuesday. Waves measuring more than one meter (3 feet) hit some places.

News videos showed rows of collapsed houses. Some wooden structures were flattened and cars were overturned. Half-sunken ships floated in bays where tsunami waves had rolled in, leaving a muddied coastline.

Fifteen people were confirmed dead in Wajima city, officials said. The damaged homes could not be immediately assessed because seven other people were seriously injured.

First Minister Fumio Kishida: Saving lives is a priority for the government to rescue people in houses – a message from the prime minister

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said saving lives was their priority and they were fighting against time. It is critical to rescue people in homes.