Huge tsunami slams coastal Japan after quake

A tsunami carries buildings (bottom) across waters in Kamaishi city port in this still image taken from video footage March 11, 2011.

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By Chris Gallagher and Linda Sieg

TOKYO | Fri Mar 11, 2011 3:28am EST

TOKYO (Reuters) - The biggest earthquake to hit Japan in 140 years struck the northeast coast on Friday, triggering a 10-meter tsunami that swept away everything in its path, including houses, cars and farm buildings on fire, media and witnesses said.

At least one person was killed in Fukushima prefecture, north of Tokyo where four million homes were without power. The 8.9 magnitude quake caused many injuries, public broadcaster NHK said, sparked fires and the wall of water, prompting warnings to people to move to higher ground in coastal areas.

The Philippines, Taiwan and Indonesia all issued tsunami alerts, reviving memories of the giant tsunami which struck Asia in 2004. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued alerts for countries as far away as Colombia and Peru.

Read the rest of the story on: Reuters 

UPDATE 9:32PM AEDT

The tsunami set off by Japan's major earthquake is currently higher than some Pacific islands which it could wash over, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said on Friday.

"Our biggest concern is the Asia and Pacific region, where developing countries are far more vulnerable to this type of unfolding disaster. The tsunami is a major threat," Paul Conneally, spokesman for the Federation, the world's biggest disaster relief network, told Reuters in Geneva.

"At the moment, it is higher than some islands and could go right over them," he said. Please for more go to: Source: Yahoo!7