Tragedy struck Japan during New Year’s Day as an earthquake hit the Sea of Japan near Ishikawa Prefecture yesterday. A day after the quake, anime studio P.A. Works shared a safety update, confirming that the studio’s office is in good condition.
Many fans of the studio breathed a sigh of relief following this update, especially considering the studio’s location, which is in the neighboring prefecture of the most affected area in the country.
Japan Gets Hit by Magnitude 7.6 Earthquake on New Year’s Day
Japan is an earthquake-prone nation, though this latest one is big even by Japanese standards.
At around 4:00 PM Japan time, a large 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck 7 km off the coast of Suzu in Ishikawa Prefecture. For anime fans, this is also the prefecture where Insomniacs After School is set.
This is said to be as strong as the Great Hanshin Earthquake of 1995, which led to widespread destruction.
Huge tremors were felt in big cities along the Sea of Japan's side of the country, including Kanazawa City, leading to the suspension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen service.
What’s more, tremors were felt as far as Tokyo and Osaka, going to show how huge the quake was.
As it struck near the coast, the earthquake also triggered tsunami warnings – the first major warning since the tragic 2011 Tohoku Earthquake.
Similar to many quakes such as this, those near the epicenter are advised to flee as there may still be aftershocks and potential tsunamis.
Even though anime studios in Tokyo were unaffected by the quake, studios such as P.A. Works are located near the Sea of Japan's side. This prompted much concern among fans.
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Toyama-Based Anime Studio P.A. Works Shares Safety Update Following Quake
A day after the earthquake, the Skip and Loafer and Shirobako studio shared an update on its official X (formerly Twitter) account.
There, the studio confirmed that their main office in Toyama Prefecture (which is beside Ishikawa) did not suffer major damage.
That doesn’t mean the office was unscathed. In a post by a studio representative, it was revealed that shelves got toppled along with framed posters, leading to strewn metal and glass.
The damage goes to show just how powerful the quake is, even if the studio’s office isn’t located in Ishikawa Prefecture.
P.A. Works’ update did not reveal anything about the quake potentially affecting the studio’s upcoming projects.
From the looks of it though, given that there’s minimal damage, the studio’s operations will likely be unaffected.
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