At 14:46 local time (05:46 GMT) a super earthquake between magnitude 8.4 and 8.9 struck 80 miles off the eastern coast of Japan. To put that in perspective I can't immediately remember an 8.9 magnitude earthquake striking anywhere ever.
Just three hours after 'quake struck with aftershocks going on it is impossible to assess the level of damage done or the number of people killed. However large parts of Sendai and towns along the eastern coast have been flattened, an oil refinery in Tokyo is on fire and at least five of Japan's nuclear power plants have shut down automatically. The only real positive is that Japan is probably one of the worlds leaders at dealing with earthquakes.
The main worry though is that the earthquake has triggered a Tsunami which has already struck Japan. This wave is now spreading out across the Pacific ocean putting every nation on the Pacific coast on alert. The first indication of how severe this Tsunami will be will come at around 10:00 GMT when it makes landfall in Taiwan. It is important that people living in those areas remain calm and follow the instructions given to them by local TV and radio.
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