VIDEO: Japan mistakenly issues magnitude 9.9 earthquake alert

Japan’s Meteorological Agency mistakenly issued a magnitude 9.9 earthquake alert on Friday, October 16, triggering warnings on mobile phones and public loudspeakers. The alert, issued at 12:40 p.m., warned of potentially maximum-level shaking across a broad area, from Hokkaido to central Japan, but was withdrawn eight minutes later after officials determined that the earthquake’s magnitude had been miscalculated.

The error stemmed from a magnitude 6.9 earthquake near Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula. During data processing, the agency incorrectly located the epicenter near the Kuril Islands and overestimated the magnitude. The tremor registered only level 1 on Japan’s Shindo intensity scale, and no tsunami warning was issued. The false alert also led Central Japan Railway to suspend Tokaido Shinkansen bullet train services for about 15 minutes. The agency acknowledged the error and launched an investigation into the technical cause, while officials said no cyberattack had been confirmed.