Earthquake early warning canceled: ``Relieved'' ``Terrible'' - Hokkaido

On the 16th, when the Earthquake Early Warning issued for Hokkaido and other areas was immediately canceled, there were many voices of relief and confusion in Sapporo that there had been no major earthquake.

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Hirotaka Mito (34), who was having lunch at a restaurant, said calmly, ``I was surprised and was careful not to break anything and cause injury.More than anything, I was relieved that there was no earthquake.'' An unemployed man in his 60s grimaced and said, ``This false alarm is terrible. I want you to investigate the cause and make sure it doesn't happen again.''

A 53-year-old office worker said, ``I received a call from my worried relatives in Tokyo, but they weren't shaking and I didn't know if they realized what had happened.'' ``I thought it was because there has been a lot of unauthorized access recently.It's surprising and annoying that even the cancellation (warning) sound is so loud,'' he said with an astonished expression on his face.

According to the city of Nemuro in Hokkaido, the city's disaster prevention administrative radio system and disaster information sharing system (L-Alert) were activated, and a broadcast was made throughout the city urging people to ensure their safety.

A person in charge of the city's crisis management division said, ``The cancellation of the early warning came at a time when the agency was discussing whether to call for evacuation along the coast due to the tsunami,'' adding, ``Fortunately, there was no major confusion, so we were relieved.''