The US embassy in Japan sends very helpful updates via email. It’s recommended that you register if you are traveling. After the 8.8 earthquake in Chile they sent out this notification for tsunamis:
The U.S. Embassy in Tokyo is transmitting the following information through the Embassy’s warden system as a public service to all U.S. citizens in Japan. Please disseminate this message to U.S. citizens in your organizations or to other Americans you know.
On Saturday, February 27, 2010, an earthquake measuring 8.8 struck the central coast of Chile early on Saturday morning, according to the U.S. Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii issued a tsunami warning for the Pacific Region. The warning covered South America, Antarctica, the Pacific Ocean islands including Hawaii, New Zealand, Japan, and Russia.
According to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center website A WIDESPREAD TSUNAMI WARNING IS IN EFFECT and the tsunami will reach Japan as follows:
JAPAN
- KUSHIRO 0435Z 28 FEB (13:35 local time)
- KATSUURA 0453Z 28 FEB (13:35 local time)
- HACHINOHE 0509Z 28 FEB (14:09 local time)
- SHIMIZU 0557Z 28 FEB (14:57 local time)
- OKINAWA 0610Z 28 FEB (15:10 local time)
Up-to-date information is available at http://www.prh.noaa.gov/ptwc/ OR http://www.prh.noaa.gov/ptwc/?region=1
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued the following:
EVALUATION
SEA LEVEL READINGS CONFIRM THAT A TSUNAMI HAS BEEN GENERATED
WHICH COULD CAUSE WIDESPREAD DAMAGE. AUTHORITIES SHOULD TAKE
APPROPRIATE ACTION IN RESPONSE TO THIS THREAT. THIS CENTER WILL
CONTINUE TO MONITOR SEA LEVEL DATA TO DETERMINE THE EXTENT AND
SEVERITY OF THE THREAT.
A TSUNAMI IS A SERIES OF WAVES AND THE FIRST WAVE MAY NOT BE THE
LARGEST. TSUNAMI WAVE HEIGHTS CANNOT BE PREDICTED AND CAN VARY
SIGNIFICANTLY ALONG A COAST DUE TO LOCAL EFFECTS. THE TIME FROM
ONE TSUNAMI WAVE TO THE NEXT CAN BE FIVE MINUTES TO AN HOUR, AND
THE THREAT CAN CONTINUE FOR MANY HOURS AS MULTIPLE WAVES ARRIVE.
FOR ALL AREAS – WHEN NO MAJOR WAVES ARE OBSERVED FOR TWO HOURS
AFTER THE ESTIMATED TIME OF ARRIVAL OR DAMAGING WAVES HAVE NOT
OCCURRED FOR AT LEAST TWO HOURS THEN LOCAL AUTHORITIES CAN ASSUME
THE THREAT IS PASSED. DANGER TO BOATS AND COASTAL STRUCTURES CAN
CONTINUE FOR SEVERAL HOURS DUE TO RAPID CURRENTS. AS LOCAL
CONDITIONS CAN CAUSE A WIDE VARIATION IN TSUNAMI WAVE ACTION THE
ALL CLEAR DETERMINATION MUST BE MADE BY LOCAL AUTHORITIES.
BULLETINS WILL BE ISSUED HOURLY OR SOONER IF CONDITIONS WARRANT.
THE TSUNAMI WARNING WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.
THE WEST COAST/ALASKA TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER WILL ISSUE PRODUCTS
FOR ALASKA…BRITISH COLUMBIA…WASHINGTON…OREGON…CALIFORNIA.
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For the latest security information worldwide, Americans should regularly monitor the State Department’s website at travel.state.gov where the current Worldwide Caution, Travel Warnings, and Travel Alerts can be found. Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the Unites States, or, for callers from outside the United States and Canada, a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444. These numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).
For further information or any emergencies involving American citizens, please contact the American Citizens Services (ACS) Unit of either the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo or one of the U.S. Consulates in Japan listed below:
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*** How to Contact Us ***
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U.S. Embassy in Tokyo
American Citizen Services
1-10-5 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-8420
Tel: 03-3224-5000
Fax: 03-3224-5856
http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/tacs-main.html
The U.S. Embassy serves Americans in Tokyo, Chiba, Fukushima, Gunma, Ibaraki, Kanagawa, Nagano, Niigata, Saitama, Shizuoka, Tochigi, Yamagata and Yamanashi.
Consulates:
* Osaka-Kobe: 11-5, Nishitenma 2-chome, Kita-ku, Osaka 530-8543; Tel: 06-6315-5912, Fax: 06-6315-5914; serving Americans in Osaka, Aichi, Ehime, Fukui, Gifu, Hiroshima, Hyogo, Ishikawa, Kagawa, Kochi, Kyoto, Mie, Nara, Okayama, Shimane, Shiga, Tokushima, Tottori, Toyama, and Wakayama prefectures. http://osaka.usconsulate.gov/
* Nagoya: Nagoya International Center Bldg. 6th floor, 1-47-1 Nagono, Nakamura-ku, Nagoya 450-0001; Tel 052-581-4501, Fax: 052-581-3190; providing emergency consular services only (including death and arrest cases) for Americans living in Aichi, Gifu, and Mie prefectures. http://nagoya.usconsulate.gov/
* Fukuoka: 5-26, Ohori 2-chome, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka 810-0052; Tel: 092-751-9331, Fax: 092-713-9222; serving Americans in Fukuoka, Kagoshima, Kumamoto, Miyazaki, Nagasaki, Oita, Saga and Yamaguchi prefectures. http://japan.usembassy.gov/fukuoka/wwwhmain.html
* Sapporo: Kita 1-jo, Nishi 28-chome, Chuo-ku, Sapporo 064-0821; Tel: 011-641-1115, Fax: 011-643-1283; serving Americans in Akita, Aomori, Hokkaido, Iwate and Miyagi prefectures. http://sapporo.usconsulate.gov/
* Naha: 2-1-1 Toyama, Urasoe City, Okinawa 901-2104; Phone: 098-876-4211, Fax: 098-876-4243, DSN: 645-7323; serving Americans in Okinawa and the Amami Oshima Island group. http://naha.usconsulate.gov/
Please note: Inclusion of Non-U.S. Government links or information does not imply endorsement of contents. This subscription list is maintained by a private company and the U.S. Government cannot guarantee the privacy of any e-mail address.
If you did not receive this message directly via the U.S. Embassy’s warden email system, we encourage you, as an American living or traveling in Japan, to register with the Embassy through the State Department’s travel registration website, https://travelregistration.state.gov/ibrs/ui/.
