Watch Japan Earthquake and Tsunami | March 11, 2011
March 11, 2011
A powerful 8.9 magnitude earthquake and a 10-meter (33-foot) tsunami hit Japan in a deadly tandem on Friday, March 11th, leaving the country's northeastern coast in massive devastation. The tremor, the strongest ever recorded in Japan, was centered near the east coast of Honshu, 231 miles northeast of Tokyo.
Based on the report from the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake hit:
130 km (80 miles) E of Sendai, Honshu, Japan
178 km (110 miles) E of Yamagata, Honshu, Japan
178 km (110 miles) ENE of Fukushima, Honshu, Japan
373 km (231 miles) NE of Tokyo, Japan
The port city of Sendai, the closest major city to the epicenter, is believed to be the hardest hit by the quake and tsunami.
An estimated 170,000 people have been evacuated and more than 3,000 have been rescued. As of this time, Japan's official death toll is 801, with many still missing. About 9,500 people are still unaccounted for in the town of Minamisanriku in Miyagi.
The 8.9 earthquake also blew out the cooling systems of nuclear reactors at the Fukishima Nuclear Plant - a dangerous situation that could lead to meltdown.
