Tsunami of 80 cm strikes Japan after Chile quake; alert lifted

Small tsunami up to 80 cm high struck Japan early Friday morning, a day after a powerful earthquake off the coast of central Chile, the Meteorological Agency said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

Erimo in Hokkaido got a 40-cm tsunami, while an 80-cm wave arrived at Kuji port in Iwate Prefecture. Other areas saw tsunami 10 to 20 cm high.

The agency had warned that tsunami up to a meter high could hit eastern Hokkaido at around 5 a.m., followed by the Tohoku and Kanto regions between 5:30 a.m. and 6 a.m. Further west, it warned of tsunami hitting Tokushima Prefecture at around 7 a.m. and Oita at 8 a.m.

A tsunami advisory was issued at 3 a.m. for Pacific coastal regions stretching from Hokkaido to Okinawa, and the Sea of Japan coast in Aomori Prefecture. The agency later lifted the advisory.

The magnitude-8.3 quake off Chile struck at around 8 a.m. Thursday, Japan time, killing at least 10 people and triggering a tsunami warning for the entire country. A wave of around 4.5 meters high struck Coquimbo.

Tsunami from major quakes in Chile have hit Japan before. In May 1960, tsunami 1 to 4 meters high struck Hokkaido and the Sanriku region more than 22 hours after a magnitude-9.5 quake there, leaving about 140 people dead or missing.