An earthquake has hit the north-east of Japan triggering a tsunami measuring 10cm, according to reports

After the tsunami alert was issued, workers at the Fukishima nuclear plant were evacuated as a precaution.

The alert has since been lifted and there have been no reports of injury or destruction.

The earthquake had a magnitude of 7.1 on the Richter scale, and hit at 0957 local time (0057 GMT).

The US Geological Survey estimated its depth at 10km (6.2 miles), with the epicentre in the same general area as the massive quake on 11 March.

The earthquake that hit back in Japan was the strongest in the countries history, with a 9.0-magnitude. Over 14, 000 people were killed and traveller patterns have been strongly impacted.

Yet Japan is determined in its recovery effort and leaders continue to encourage travellers to visit Japan and Japanese nationals to continue travelling abroad.

A recent report, commissioned by WTTC, looked into previous disasters to gauge the potential impact of The Tohoku Pacific earthquake and tsunami which has been described by Japan’s Prime Minister as “the toughest and most difficult crisis for Japan since the end of World War II”.

The findings of the research indicate that the impact of the earthquake and tsunami could range from a reduction of ¥0.9 trillion (as a best possible scenario) to ¥1.9 trillion (as the worst case scenario) in Travel & Tourism’s contribution to Japan’s GDP in 2011, depending on travellers’ perceptions. A return to baseline forecasts could be seen by 2012 if clear messages help international and domestic travel resume.

As the 5th largest origin market in the world for long-haul travel and the largest Asian market a significant fall in the number of Japanese people travelling to destinations around the world would have a massive impact on global Travel & Tourism.

 

City.Mobi

Also in Asia today, City.Mobi is celebrating the success of its new guide to Japan.

City.Mobi offers the most comprehensive mobile travel guides available, with over 800 cities in 200 countries listed. Each is developed by the City.Mobi team to combine into a single global travel directory.

However, each city retains its own mobile identity via a dedicated domain. Already on offer are nagoya.city.mobi, Osaka.mobi, Tokyo.mobi and Kyoto.city.mobi.

kyoto.city.mobi is the latest in this illustrious line up, offering click to call functionality – which means no scribbling down telephone numbers.

Most entries are also linked to websites where users can quickly access more detailed information if needed.

Other key features include information on accommodation, restaurants, attractions, entertainment, nightlife, shopping, and transport.

City.Mobi guides include user reviews and traveller utilities such as a translation guide, currency converter, news and local weather guide.