The biggest seismic event to hit the region in decades, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck parts of the Ishikawa Prefecture of Japan on Monday afternoon, triggering tsunami warnings, flattening buildings and claiming scores of lives.
[UPDATED 3 JANUARY 2024]
Silencing New Year’s festivities, the large quake struck the Noto Peninsula, which juts out north of central Honshu to the Sea of Japan.
Consequently, the earthquake prompted the Japan Meteorological Agency to issue the first special tsunami warning since a 2011 magnitude-9 earthquake and tsunami devastated parts of the country’s north-east.
However, the agency downgraded the warning just hours later, Japan’s Kyodo News Agency reported.
According to local media, South Korea, North Korea and Russia issued similar alerts for eastern coastal regions.
While the Noto Peninsula is not heavily trafficked by international tourists, the quake impacted the popular destination of Kanazawa, where images of damaged shrines have emerged.
Normally, millions of Japanese welcome the new year by visiting shrines and temples and the Ishikawa capital is famous for these monuments.
Tremors were also felt in highly-visited Nagano prefecture, where winter enthusiasts flock to ski.
“The snow from the electric wire (came) down, and also from the roof it fell down and all the cars are shaking, and so everybody was panicked,” Jonny Wu, a Taiwanese tourist visiting Nagano told Reuters.
Karryon General Manager Dani Tuffield, who is currently in Japan, said she felt the quake on a train between tourist hotspots Kyoto and Nara.
This New Year season has been the first in Japan since the government downgraded COVID-19 to the same status as the seasonal flu, so the country has seen massive holiday traffic.
Flights and trains stop
According to broadcaster NHK, Japanese airlines suspended flights to and from airports in affected regions, with the country’s largest carrier All Nippon Airways (ANA) cancelling 15 flights as of 6pm (local time) Monday evening and Japan Airlines grounding nine services.
The airlines have advised passengers to stay tuned to their websites for updated information.
Elsewhere, major rail operator East Japan Rail Company (JR East) suspended operations “on a wide range of conventional [local] lines and Shinkansen trains, mainly in the Hokuriku region” on Monday.
It also said that the Joetsu/Hokuriku Shinkansen would not operate in the morning “in some sections” today (Tuesday).
“Delays or suspensions may also occur on other routes,” it added.
The company says passengers should check the JR East app, social media and its website for the latest service information.
Business mostly as usual
Meanwhile, travel company InsideJapan said that it did not expect the quake to have any significant impact on travel to Japan.
“The major cities on the east coast are unaffected and although some of the pictures from the Noto Peninsula are quite dramatic with some collapsed houses and large cracks in some roads, Japan is very well geared up to deal with these kinds of incidents,” the company stated.
“The closest major city to the epicentre is Kanazawa and although some damage has been sustained, we are not getting any reports of anything major in this location.”
However, InsideJapan advises those planning to travel to the Noto Peninsula in the next couple of weeks to consider alternative destinations “or at the very least, check in with your tour operator, travel agent or the accommodation where you are booked to stay”.
“For everywhere else in Japan no changes to your plans will be necessary,” it added.
“The Hokuriku Shinkansen (Bullet Train) which runs between Tokyo and Kanazawa via the West Coast is currently suspended but we are expecting operations to resume from 2nd January.
“We have reached out to all our clients in the area to ensure their safety.”
Nearly 100,000 people across nine prefectures were ordered to evacuate parts of Japan’s west coast, Reuters reported.
Tourism boom
Travel to Japan has experienced a massive resurgence since the country reopened.
Among Flight Centre customers, the Asian nation was the fourth most popular overseas family holiday destination in 2023.
The country also topped G Adventures’ Where to Travel list for 2024, with the travel company reporting a 134 per cent rise in 2024 bookings.
Amid popular demand, Intrepid Travel is also increasing its 2024 Japan trips, upping the tour dates of its current small-group itineraries by more than 50 per cent.
