Friday, October 6, 2000

At about 1:30 P.M. a strong earthquake shook western Tottori Prefecture. The earthquake registered 6+ on the Japanese seismic scale in the city of Sakaiminato and the town of Hinomachi and 6- in the towns of Saihakucho and Mizoguchicho. Tremors between 1 and 5- were also observed in the Chugoku, Kinki, and Shikoku regions. At 1:35 Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori set up a countermeasures office in the Prime Minister's Official Residence to enable the entire government to respond swiftly. At 1:55 the Prime Minister attended a meeting of the emergency team along with Chief Cabinet Secretary Hidenao Nakagawa and National Land Agency Director General Chikage Ogi. At 2:29 the governor of Tottori Prefecture requested that Self-Defense Forces personnel be sent to help with disaster relief. At 2:40 the Prime Minister spoke with the governor by phone, confirming the situation and reassuring him that the central government would render all necessary assistance.