issued. it struck at about 4:00 p.m. local time. a series of strong aftershocks have already been recorded. and tsunami waves of 1.2 meters have hit a number of areas along the western coast. japan s prime minister is urging residents in tsunami areas to evacuate as soon as possible. the u.s. geological survey and japan meteorological office as well have been making similar warnings. hanako montgomery is joining us live from tokyo. tell us what information you ve got right now, that knyou have w hanako. reporter: this was a large and powerful, 7.5 magnitude earthquake that hit around 4:10 p.m. local time, a time when many people are celebrating new year s day with their familiesnd loved ones. and it was a shallow earthquake with depths of around 10 kilometers or about 6 miles. this is significant to note because with shallow earthquakes, we know that they could potentially be more powerful and more destructive and essentially trigger tsunamis that could really devastate cer
this new year s day. evacuations and tsunami warnings triggered after a massive earthquake, this is video of the tremors rocking a train sdags in cen station in central japan. tsunami waves could be as high as 16 feet. here you can see people hiding under tables at a bowling alley as the earthquake shook that building. japan s weather agency says that powerful aftershocks could continue the next three days with potential building collapses and landslides. this is video of the aftermath in some buildings that have already been destroyed. let s go to hanako montgomery in tokyo. and we re only getting a rough picture here because the communications are really bad and the power stations had to be closed down because they were under threat. reporter: yeah, max, as you said, this was a very powerful earthquake and already a tsunami warning triggered for the entire west coast of japan. we also know it was a shallow earthquake. and this is significant because with shallow earthquak
welcome to our viewers around the world. i m max foster. a powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake hitting western japan and tsunami warning being issued, it struck around 4:00 p.m. local time, a series of strong after shocks have already been recorded as well. so not just one tremor. japan s prime minister urging residents in stsunami areas to evacuate and get to higher ground. the u.s. geological survey and japan meteorological agency say the original quake had a depth of 10 kilometers, or 6 miles, which has a huge impact on how powerful the aftershocks are. hanako montgomery is joining us there tokyo. first of all i want to ask you about the tsunamis. we re getting reports that they have actually hit the coastline. reporter: yeah, max, that s correct. we re seeing some tsunamis that measure 1.2 meters in height or nearly 4 feet. but a major tsunami warning has been issued. and we could potentially see tsunamis measuring up to 5 meters in ishikawa prefecture. we know the entire