SINGAPORE: When the Shinkansen bullet train that Dr Ewen Chee and his family was on started shaking violently before coming to a stop early on Monday morning (Jun 18), the Singaporean tourist thought they were experiencing a power failure.
It was only after he received a mass broadcast message on his mobile phone that he realised that there had been an earthquake.
At least three people were killed and and more than 200 injured after a strong quake rocked Osaka in western Japan during the morning rush hour. The Japanese meteorological agency originally put the quake’s magnitude at 5.9 but later raised it to 6.1.
“We woke up early to catch the Shinkansen to Kyoto for a day trip,” the 46-year-old told Channel NewsAsia.”Two minutes into the journey, there was a violent shaking of the train and it stopped.”
Said Dr Chee: “I thought it was a power failure at first, as everyone else was so calm on the train. We couldn’t understand what was happening until a mass broadcast message was received (on) my mobile, telling us to keep calm and take shelter.”
“Only then it dawned upon us – it was an earthquake!”
The train doors were locked, said Dr Chee. “We took the cue from the locals and all stayed in the train.”
The train eventually continued on to Kyoto, said the father of two, adding that they spent “a good four hours” on board.
From there, the family took a taxi back to their hotel in Osaka to retrieve their luggage and passports as all the trains were down, according to Dr Chee.
Although they had planned to stay in Osaka until Wednesday, the family decided to cut short their visit and take a flight to Tokyo instead.
“The city (Osaka) is functioning as normal, except trains were all down and taxis were hard to come by,” he said. “We decided to still leave as aftershocks are expected and it would be more relaxing to continue our holidays further away from the earthquake”.
“I COULD HEAR AND FEEL THE TREMBLING”
Singaporean postgraduate student Benny Tong was at home in Sakai, just south of Osaka, when the earthquake happened while he was about to prepare his breakfast.
“There was first quite intense rattling for about 20 seconds, and I could hear and feel the trembling of the house and furniture. Then the ground shook and swayed quite dramatically for about a minute,” the 32-year-old told Channel NewsAsia. “I steadied myself under a door frame in case the house collapsed, but thankfully nothing too bad happened.”
“I could see the overhead electricity cables outside my house shake quite a lot.”
He had received a “loud emergency alarm” from his phone when the tremors started, added Mr Tong. “This is the countrywide alert system that Japan has for all of its mobile phones. That was how I immediately realised it was an earthquake.”
Mr Tong was in Japan visiting his fiancee and her family until August, and said he usually went “every half a year or so, for a month or two each time”.
He said he had experienced a few minor earthquakes before in Osaka, but that Monday’s was “the first time I felt one as big as this”.
“People are generally calm now,” he said. “I was able to contact my Japanese friends and family through phone, Facebook and other messaging apps, and confirm that we are all safe and sound.”
Most major organisations such as universities had cancelled work for the day, he said, adding that most train lines had also suspended operations.
Another Singaporean, Mr Luis Hoon Ding Yuan, similarly told Channel NewsAsia that Monday’s earthquake was not the worst he had experienced in the country.
The 32-year-old SAP system analyst, who lives in Kyoto with his wife who is Japanese, said he was at home taking out the rubbish when the earthquake happened.
“Everything was the same before the quake, and then the ground started shaking,” he said. “After the quake, a few items toppled in my kitchen and my living room. My TV was intact though.”
“There were slight tremors, but (they were) almost unfeelable,” he added. “It was not the worst I felt. I had an even worst experience in Tokyo though.”
One Osaka resident told Channel NewsAsia she is stocking up on supplies. (Photo: Channel NewsAsia reader)
Meanwhile, a Japanese mother-of-three who lives in Osaka told Channel NewsAsia that this was her third big earthquake experience and that she was now stocking up on supplies.
“I lived through the 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake and the 2011 Tohoku earthquake. So this was my third big earthquake experience,” she said, adding that “I am so afraid of quakes so I prepared crazily.”
“Most people in Osaka lived through the traumatic Hanshin earthquake, so this one was a painful reminder, especially when a few lives have already been lost.”
