Officials in the disaster alert headquarters that was set up in Toshima Village in Kagoshima Prefecture were busy on July 1.

The area has been rattled by more than 880 earthquakes in 11 days. Earthquakes with a seismic intensity of lower 5 on the scale ranging from 0 to 7 were observed on June 30 and July 2.

Kubo Genichiro, Toshima Village Mayor / 5 on the seismic intensity scale is an unnerving number. We have to prepare for the next one, and we also need to think about what to do and what kind of support we can get if damage is caused.

A quake with a seismic intensity of 4 was observed on July 1 as well.

NTV Reporter / When you look at the Japan Meteorological Agency’s website, you can see a lot of earthquakes have been happening near Tokara Islands.

 According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, 755 earthquakes of intensity 1 or higher have occurred between June 21 and July 1.

NTV Reporter / The map shows the earthquake locations up until June 29. You can see that they are concentrated in the seas around the Tokara Islands.

The epicenters are concentrated in the southwest of Akusekijima Island. On June 30, an earthquake measuring lower 5 on the seismic intensity scale was observed on the island.

Guest house owner on Akusekijima Island / I felt this vertical earthquake motion, and then a horizontal one. After that there was a spinning motion, and I felt like I was being swung around.

The last time the island observed an earthquake of intensity 5 or higher was December 9, 2021.

A landslide occurred, forcing residents to evacuate the island.

Guest house owner on Akusekijima Island / I feel anxious every day. I can’t sleep much, and I’m worried when an earthquake will hit.

The number of reservations at the guest house has also been affected.

Guest house owner on Akusekijima Island / Since the earthquakes started on June 21, we’ve had customers calling us for reservations, but we’ve been turning them down.

There has been more impact on tourism.

The Toshima Village Office decided to cancel the island tour that was scheduled to begin on July 4.

Officials said they will later make a decision on the tour scheduled from August 1 depending on seismic activities.

An expert said that the duration of this seismic activity is longer than usual.

Researcher at Crisis and Environment Management Policy Institute / I feel like the seismic activity is lasting longer than in the past. It would usually stop in about a week in recent years, but this time it’s been longer. We should expect it to continue for the time being. I wouldn’t be surprised if there is an earthquake of lower 5 in intensity like on June 30 or even upper 5.

The Japan Meteorological Agency has urged people to stay cautious against earthquakes for the time being.