M6.1 earthquake near Asahikawa, Hokkaido

What happened

A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck 16 km NE of Asahikawa, Japan on 21 Oct 2011, 08:02 UTC at a depth of 187 km.

Earthquakes of this size are classed as Strong. Can cause damage in populated areas up to tens of kilometres away. This was an intermediate-depth earthquake, so shaking is spread over a wider, gentler area.

The nearest town in our records is Asahikawa, about 16 km away in Hokkaido, Japan.