Dozens of residents have evacuated remote islands in southern Japan after experiencing nearly 1,600 earthquakes in recent weeks, the local mayor announced on Monday.
Genichiro Kubo, based on another island, confirmed that there has been no major physical damage on Akuseki island, the hardest-hit area, even following a 5.1-magnitude quake overnight.
However, the almost non-stop jolts since June 21 have caused severe stress to area residents, many of whom are suffering from sleep deprivation. Kubo stated at a press conference that out of Akuseki’s 89 residents, 44 had evacuated to the regional hub of Kagoshima by Sunday, with an additional 15 people leaving another nearby island.
The municipality, which encompasses seven inhabited and five uninhabited islands, is approximately an 11-hour ferry ride from Kagoshima. As of early Monday, the area has experienced what seismologists refer to as a “swarm” of 1,582 quakes since June 21.
Experts believe an underwater volcano and magma flows might be the underlying cause. They caution that they cannot predict how long the tremors will continue. “We cannot foresee what might happen in the future. We cannot see when this will end,” Mayor Kubo told reporters.
Japan’s Seismic Activity: Past Patterns and Unfounded Fears
A similar period of intense seismic activity in the region occurred in September 2023, when 346 earthquakes were recorded, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Japan is one of the world’s most seismically active countries, situated atop four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific “Ring of Fire.” The archipelago, home to approximately 125 million people, typically experiences around 1,500 tremors annually, accounting for about 18 percent of the world’s earthquakes.
Some foreign tourists have reportedly postponed their visits to Japan due to unfounded fears, fanned by social media, that a major quake was imminent. A particular source of concern was a manga comic reissued in 2021, which predicted a major disaster on July 5, 2025—a prediction that did not materialize.
