Earthquake On New Year's Day A powerful earthquake struck central Japan on Monday, triggering warnings for residents to evacuate some areas on its west coast, destroying buildings, knocking out power to thousands of homes and disrupting travel to the region. Authorities have evacuated most of the people. The earthquake has damaged some old houses but there was no large-scale damage. 7.6 earthquake is massive but Japan is well-prepared for such situations. A report by NDTV.