Japan on tsunami alert after Samoa quake

A tsunami alert was issued for the Pacific shores of Japan after a massive 8.0 magnitude earthquake struck thousands of kilometres away, off the islands of Samoa and American Samoa.

Japan's meteorological agency warned that tsunami waves of up to 50 centimetres would reach the archipelago's Pacific shores.

The first waves were expected to hit the Ogasawara island chain, 1,000 kilometres south of Tokyo, at around 11:00 am (local time), followed by Japan's main island about an hour later, it said.

"We issued a tsunami alert for the nation's entire coastline facing the Pacific. We urge people not to engage in activity in or near the sea as it is very dangerous," said Yasuo Sekita, who heads the agency's quake division. - + selanjutnya

Japan on tsunami alert after Samoa quake