No Filipino among Japan quake casualties - DFA

MANILA, December 10 ------ No Filipino casualties have been reported so far after a magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck off Japan’s northeastern coast, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.

In a statement, the DFA said it is also "closely monitoring" the situation through the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo. "At this time, the Embassy has not received any reports of Filipino casualties. The Embassy and the Migrant Workers Office in Tokyo continue to coordinate with their contacts in the Filipino and local communities to ascertain the condition of our nationals," the statement read.

The DFA advised the Filipino community to remain alert, observe safety rules from local authorities, and ensure readiness for potential aftershocks. The Agence France-Presse reported that the magnitude 7.6 quake struck at 1415 GMT off Misawa on Japan's Pacific coast on Monday, at a depth of 53 kilometers (33 miles).

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a tsunami warning, with one wave hitting a port in the northern region of Aomori, where Misawa is located, at 11:43 pm (1443 GMT). Over 90,000 residents were also ordered to evacuate, according to a report from Reuters. Late Monday evening, there was a special advisory warning of the possibility of another strong offshore earthquake in the Hokkaido–Sanriku region within the coming week.

As of Tuesday morning, December 9, tsunami advisories in the affected areas have been lifted. "The seven prefectures affected are in northern Japan: Hokkaido, Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Akita, Yamagata, and Fukushima. Latest estimates place the total number of Filipinos in these prefectures at around 13,000," the DFA said.

Source: news.abs-cbn.com