Japan disaster incoming? Tokyo on edge as over 1000 quakes rattle Tokara Islands; govt warns of more strong tremors

JAPAN is experiencing strong earthquakes, particularly in waters southwest of its main island. While the government on Saturday warned of the possibility of further strong earthquakes, authorities are urging the public not to believe unfounded predictions of a major disaster.

The recent seismic events have fueled rumors, particularly stemming from interpretations of a 1999 comic book titled “The Future I Saw.”

Recent quakes and evacuations

On Thursday, a 5.5-magnitude quake struck off the coast of Kyushu, Japan’s southernmost main island, followed by another 5.4-magnitude tremor on Saturday, Reuters reported.

These tremors, strong enough to make standing difficult, were one of more than 1,000 tremors in the islands of Kagoshima prefecture in the past two weeks.

From June 21 to June 27, as many as 474 earthquakes rattled an island chain with many active volcanoes in southern Japan, the national weather agency said on Thursday. While no major damage was reported, the residents of the islands have been asked to remain vigilant.

A total of 474 such earthquakes had been observed around the Tokara island chain, south of Kyushu, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said. The strongest of the 474 recorded earthquakes were two magnitude 5.1 tremors.

The authorities on Friday took prompt action, evacuating some residents from remote islands as a precautionary measure.

What did the comic predict?

As the tremors shook the nation, it has fueled rumors stemming from a comic book prediction that a major disaster would befall Japan this month.

Details in “The Future I saw” have prompted some travelers to avoid Japan as it has predicted a catastrophic event on Saturday.

Ryo Tatsuki, the artist behind the manga, first published in 1999 and re-released in 2021, said she was "not a prophet" in a statement issued by her publisher.

Impact on tourism

After the predictions were circulated widely, tourists arriving from Hong Kong were down 11% in May from the same month last year, according to the latest data.

"With our current scientific knowledge, it's difficult to predict the exact time, place or scale of an earthquake," said Ayataka Ebita, director of the Japan Meteorological Agency's earthquake and tsunami monitoring division.

"We ask that people base their understanding on scientific evidence," Ebita told a press conference.

Japan has been a tourist hotspot, with record visitor numbers this year, as April set a record monthly high of 3.9 million travelers.

Earthquakes are a common occurrence in Japan, which falls under one of the world's most seismically active areas. It accounts for about one-fifth of the world's earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater, the news agency said.