Several injuries occurred from falls and cooking accidents during three strong earthquakes that struck eastern Shimane Prefecture and Tottori Prefecture on the morning of January 6, 2026, with intensities up to upper 5 on Japan's seismic scale. No tsunami warning was issued, but the Japan Meteorological Agency warned of possible strong aftershocks for the next week.
The earthquakes occurred between approximately 10:18 a.m. and 10:37 a.m., centered in eastern Shimane Prefecture at shallow depths. The strongest, with a preliminary magnitude of 6.2, caused upper 5 shaking in Matsue (Shimane), Sakaiminato, Hino, and Kofu (Tottori). Subsequent quakes registered lower 5 in Yasugi (Shimane) and other areas, and 4 in Yonago (Tottori) and Yurihama.
Lower intensities were felt in additional locations including Unnan (Shimane), Hiezu Village, Nanbu, Hoki (Tottori), and even Fukuyama (Hiroshima), where shaking reached 4.
Injuries reported so far include a woman in her 90s in Fukuyama who sustained minor leg and hip injuries from a fall at home, and a woman in her 20s at a supermarket who suffered burns on both legs from splashing oil while cooking. The Matsue municipal fire department reported three hospitalizations as of 1:30 p.m.—a woman in her 90s, a woman in her 80s, and a man in his 40s—all due to falls triggered by the shaking.
The agency continues to urge vigilance for quakes up to upper 5 intensity in the region for about a week, amid ongoing tectonic activity.
