The "M9.9" quake alert that wasn't: cancelled within 8 minutes

This week's news · Checked 2026-10-20

What happened. On Friday 16 October 2026 at about 12:40 pm Japan time, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued an earthquake early warning (Kinkyu Jishin Sokuho) for Hokkaido and the Tohoku region, estimating a magnitude 9.9 quake near the Chishima (Kuril) Islands and shaking up to level 7, the top of Japan's scale (Nippon.com / Jiji, 16 Oct). 8 minutes later (12:48) it was cancelled. The real quake was an M6.9 off Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, about 160 km deep, at around 12:38; the strongest shaking in Japan was only level 1 in Hakodate (The Star / Xinhua, 16 Oct). JMA apologised, said its system misidentified the epicentre and overestimated the magnitude, and found no cyberattack. Train services in parts of the country were briefly disrupted.

What it means for you. Japan's early warnings arrive a few seconds to a few tens of seconds before strong shaking, and their accuracy is limited because they are calculated from very short data (JMA, "Examples of Response to an Earthquake Early Warning"). So when the alert sounds on your phone, TV or at a station, act first, check later: cover the kids' heads, move away from windows and things that can fall, and hold a pole or strap on a train. If the alert turns out to be wrong, you lose a few minutes; trains may stop for a while, so leave extra time if you're heading to the airport.

What to do now. Before you fly, install the Japan Tourism Agency's free Safety tips app (earthquake and tsunami alerts in English), and make sure your phone has data for the whole trip: Japan eSIM on Klook. Heading to Hokkaido this winter? See Hokkaido in winter for Muslim families and Sapporo hotels for Muslim families. Affiliate links may be used; your price does not change.