Tsunami triggered by major earthquake off Japanese coast 

The Japan News.Net Saturday 14th November, 2015

TOKYO, Japan - A major earthquake has struck off Japan's south-western coast, triggering a small tsunami, according to officials.

The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said a 30cm (1ft) tsunami was registered on the southern Nakanoshima island, part of Kagoshima prefecture following the 7.0 magnitude quake.

There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries and a tsunami warning issued for Kagoshima and Satsunan islands was later lifted.

The quake happened at a depth of about 10km (six miles). The US Geological Survey said it was some 159km south-west of the town of Makurazaki.

A massive earthquake in 2011 caused a tsunami that left more than 18,000 people dead in north-eastern Japan.

More than 230,000 people have yet to return to their home towns since the disaster.

The tsunami caused nuclear accidents, the most high profile of which was the level 7 meltdowns at three reactors in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant complex, and the associated evacuation zones affecting hundreds of thousands of residents.

Many electrical generators were taken down, and at least three nuclear reactors suffered explosions due to hydrogen gas that had built up within their outer containment buildings after cooling system failure resulting from the loss of electrical power.

Several hundred thousand residents within a 20km (12mi) radius of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant and a 10km (6.2mi) radius of the Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Plant were evacuated.

Early estimates placed insured losses from the earthquake alone at US $14.5 to US $34.6billion.

US $183billion was injected into the banking system by the Bank of Japan on 14 March in an effort to normalise market conditions.

The World Bank's estimated economic cost was US $235billion, making it the costliest natural disaster in world history.