Japan tsunami alerts downgraded following powerful earthquake off northern coast – as it happened

People in affected areas are still urged to evacuate after quake registering 7.7 magnitude An earthquake registering a preliminary magnitude of 7.7 off northern Japan on Monday prompted a short-lived tsunami alert and the advisory of a higher risk of a possible mega-quake for coastal areas there. The Cabinet Office and the Japan Meteorological Agency said there was a 1% chance for a mega-quake, compared to a 0.1% chance during normal times, in the next week or so following the powerful quake near the Chishima and Japan trenches, Associated Press reports. The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said only one person in Aomori, north of Iwate, was injured after falling due to Monday’s quake. Still, Monday’s events were a reminder to the quake-prone area of the March 2011 disaster that ravaged large swaths of the northern coast, triggering a nuclear crisis in Fukushima. The quake occurred off the coast of Sanriku at around 4:53pm local time (0753 GMT) Monday, at a depth of about 19km (11 miles), the meteorological agency said. Footage on NHK television showed hanging objects swaying and people squatting at a shopping centre in Aomori, as authorities told people to seek higher groun