BBC News - Japan tsunami

1133: The BBC's Kate McGowen in Jakarta says people in the north-east of Indonesia are waiting for the tsunami to hit the coast there any moment now. She adds: "This is not the region that was hit by the tsunami in 2004. But when you mention the word "tsunami" here, people in Indonesia know the scale, they know how massive this could be. We have been hearing about traffic jams in the main towns and cities in North Sulawesi as people try to leave the coast as quickly as possible."

1129: Mike Hall in Hakodate, south of Hokkaido, writes: "We have been really lucky, my apartment was shook up for several minutes and a few things fell over but there was no major damage. It is very much like a swaying rolling motion, with jolts that really put the fear of God in you. Initially, I didn't pay any attention as we've had earthquakes before. But this time, it went on for longer and there were several big aftershocks. Power and water supplies are fine at the moment and cell phones and the internet seem unaffected. But we have a major tsunami warning in effect." Have Your Say

1126: The BBC's Roland Buerk in Tokyo says 32 people are now known to have died in the earthquake and tsunami. Our correspondent adds: "There are enormous crowds of people on the streets of Tokyo, the roads are clogged with traffic, and millions of people are walking home because the railways have been closed down. But it is calm and orderly. People are still queueing at pedestrian crossings.

1123: A number of countries in the Pacific are now bracing for a tsunami. George Pillioco, who lives in Vanuatu, tells the BBC: "The radio told us to expect the tsunami between 2300 and 0100 tonight (1200-1400 GMT), and that we should be prepared. We're on the east of the island which is on a hill. So, we're not going anywhere, but of course we're worried".

1118: US President Barack Obama offers his "condolences" to the people of Japan and says his country stands ready to help them after a massive earthquake and tsunami, the AFP reports.

1116: The British Geological Survey tells the BBC that the Japanese earthquake is the 6th largest ever recorded (i.e. since 1900).

1113: Japan has declared a state of emergency because of the failure of the cooling system at one nuclear plant, according to the Associated Press. Officials say there has been no leak of radiation.

1109: Some dramatic pictures out of Japan in this photo gallery on the BBC News website

1103: BBC1 is now broadcasting a half-hour special on Japan's quake and tsunami.

1058: Britain's Foreign Office has now set up a helpline for anyone in the UK worried about friends or relatives in Japan affected by the earthquake and tsunami: 020 7008 0000.

1055: Roland Pease from the BBC Science Unit says: "I doubt scientists have ever had images like this showing the waves of water and debris, and they will be looking at them closely to find out more about these events."

1053: Stuart Weinstein, from the PTWC, tells the BBC World Service that coastal areas of Hawaii have been evacuated. He says Hawaii could be hit by a wave of up to two-metre high. He adds: "For South America, we are looking right now at a height of between half-a-metre and a metre, for some places on the US West Coast it might be around a metre."

1046: tokyoreporter tweets: "NHK showing massive cracks in pavement, extensive external building damage in Sendai."

1043: Shola Fawehimni, who is at Hokkaido's airport in northern Japan, says: "It was a bit surreal. The chairs and the floor started moving and swaying. I wasn't really sure what was going on. Then the building started swaying and I realised it was an earthquake. Some ceiling panels fell down."

1034: The UN nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, says four nuclear power plants closest to the earthquake's epicentre have been shut down safely.

1028: UK Prime Minister David Cameron says the Japanese earthquake is a "terrible reminder of the destructive power of nature. Everyone should be thinking of the country and its people, and I have asked immediately that our government look at what we can do to help."

1027: The BBC News website now runs a piece where eyewitnesses recount their experience of the moment the quake struck.

1018: The Japanese government and police raise the death toll from the quake to 29, the Associated Press reports.

1017: The authorities in Taiwan say there have been small evacuations, but no major damage and no unusual sea waves, the BBC's Cindy Sui in Taipei reports.

1014: japanreports tweets: "There were reports about mudslides in mountains. No safe places in japan..."

1008: Louisa Ke, a BBC reporter in Tokyo, says: "When the earthquake happened, I was in my study.The earthquake lasted three minutes, according to reports, but it felt like five. This is something I have never witnessed in my life.

1001: A tsunami warning is now extended to the entire US West Coast, according to the Associated Press.

0959: staceymizzle tweets: "Thoughts are with the people of Japan and all the neighbouring countries that will be affected by the tsunami."

0956: The death toll from the quake has now reached 26, the AFP is quoting reports in Japan's media.

0947: More from a news briefing in Tokyo by Japan's meteorological agency. Spokesman Hirofumi Yokoyama said: "Historically, the magnitude scale was different, so simple comparison is not possible - but 8.8 is one of the largest we have experienced in Japan... It is the largest recorded by the equipment currently in place". He added that 8.8 magnitude "is maximum, unprecedented scale looking through history".

0937: Japan's meteorological agency now says earthquake had a magnitude of 8.8.

0929: The earthquake which hit Japan on Friday was the country's biggest ever and the seventh largest on record, according to US Geological Survey data, the AFP reports.

0921: Jeffrey Balanag, who lives in Tokyo, describes the moment the quake struck. "The building wasn't shaking it was rolling, like a boat on the sea. It was really creepy. It made me very scared," he tells the BBC.

0918: The confirmed death toll now stands at six, the BBC's Roland Buerk in Tokyo says.

0913: The Red Cross warns that the tsunami wave caused by the quake is currently higher than some Pacific islands and "could go right over them".

0900: Reports now say at least five people died and many are missing.

0856: Robert Cessaro, from the PTWC, tells the BBC World Service that "the depth of the quake is about 10km, in other words it's a very shallow event, and also it's in the water. So right away we know that it's going to produce a tsunami. This one is pretty big."

0852: In the Philippines, the government strongly urged residents of the country's Pacific coast to "go farther inland" because of a tsunami threat, the AFP reports.

0848: Reports now say that at least one person was killed in Tokyo and there were several injuries in the capital.

0837: Natsuki Morikubo, another Tokyo resident, tells the BBC: "Suddenly the ground started to shake and I thought I felt sick or something, but I gradually realised this was the huge one we expected for years."

0834: One Tokyo resident, Yukiko, told BBC World Today she was in her fourth floor apartment when the quake struck: "I first thought it was just the usual moderate quake we have from time to time. Then it started shaking really violently. I've always lived in Tokyo, but I've never felt such a big quake in my life.

0832: Victor Sardina, from the PTWC, says that a "tsunami wave will cross the Pacific, no doubt about that. The same tsunami wave will reach all the way down to Chile... This is going to produce a huge amount of damage."

0828: The full list of countries and regions potentially affected by the tsunami is available on the website of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre

0827: The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) in Hawaii widens its tsunami warning to include Hawaii and the rest of the Pacific Ocean. The warning also includes Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and Central and South America.

0824: Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano says troops are being sent to help in the affected areas. "We have already had offers of help from foreign countries, we are prepared to ask for relief in the future," he adds.

0821: In Russia's Far East, some 11,000 people have been evacuated from areas that could be affected by the tsunami, including the Kuril islands and Sakhalin island\r

0816: The earthquake struck at 1446 local time (0546 GMT) and was followed by a series of powerful aftershocks. Seismologists say it is one of the largest quakes to hit Japan for many years.

0813: "Damage has been inflicted over a wide area," Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan says. "I offer deepest sympathy to people affected by the disaster. Some nuclear plants have stopped automatically, but no information about any leaks of radiation. We ask people of Japan to act calmly."

0811: The BBC's Roland Buerk in Tokyo says: "Buildings swayed... I was in the street, it was like walking across the deck of a ship at sea. People were shocked, some dropped to the ground in fear".

0803: Japan's NHK television showed cars, ships and even buildings being swept away by a vast wall of water. Numerous casualties are feared, and there have already been reports of injuries in Tokyo.

0801: Officials say the 8.9 magnitude quake struck off Japan's north-east coast, about 250 miles (400km) from Tokyo at a depth of 20 miles.

0800: Welcome to the BBC's live coverage of events in Japan, where a massive earthquake has triggered a devastating tsunami. Stay with us for the latest updates - reports from our correspondents on the ground, expert analysis, eyewitness reports and reaction from around the world. You can contact us via email, text or twitter. We'll publish what we can.

via bbc.co.uk