An <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Tōhoku_earthquake_and_tsunami" id="mwATY" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami">earthquake</a> measuring 9.0 in magnitude strikes <span about="#mwt198" data-mw='{"parts":[{"template":{"target":{"wt":"convert","href":"./Template:Convert"},"params":{"1":{"wt":"130"},"2":{"wt":"km"},"3":{"wt":"mi"},"abbr":{"wt":"on"}},"i":0}}]}' id="mwATc" typeof="mw:Transclusion">130</span><span about="#mwt198" typeof="mw:Entity"> </span><span about="#mwt198">km (81</span><span about="#mwt198" typeof="mw:Entity"> </span><span about="#mwt198">mi)</span> east of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sendai" id="mwATg" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Sendai">Sendai</a>, Japan, triggering a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Tōhoku_earthquake_and_tsunami" id="mwATk" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami">tsunami</a> killing thousands of people. This event also triggered the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukushima_nuclear_accident" id="mwATo" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Fukushima nuclear accident">second largest nuclear accident</a> in history, and one of only two events to be classified as a Level 7 on the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Nuclear_Event_Scale" id="mwATs" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="International Nuclear Event Scale">International Nuclear Event Scale</a>.<sup about="#mwt202" class="mw-ref reference" data-mw='{"name":"ref","attrs":{},"body":{"id":"mw-reference-text-cite_note-38"}}' id="cite_ref-38" rel="dc:references" typeof="mw:Extension/ref"><a href="./March_11#cite_note-38" id="mwATw" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 38;"><span class="mw-reflink-text" id="mwAT0">[38]</span></a></sup>
<span class="mw-reference-text" id="mw-reference-text-cite_note-38"><cite about="#mwt199" class="citation web cs1" id="mwCDM"><a class="external text" href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Japan-earthquake-and-tsunami-of-2011#ref299861" id="mwCDQ" rel="mw:ExtLink nofollow">"Japan earthquake and tsunami of 2011 | Facts &amp; Death Toll | Britannica"</a>. <i id="mwCDU">www.britannica.com</i><span class="reference-accessdate" id="mwCDY">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap" id="mwCDc">21 January</span> 2023</span>.</cite><span about="#mwt199" class="Z3988" id="mwCDg" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&amp;rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&amp;rft.genre=unknown&amp;rft.jtitle=www.britannica.com&amp;rft.atitle=Japan+earthquake+and+tsunami+of+2011+%7C+Facts+%26+Death+Toll+%7C+Britannica&amp;rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.britannica.com%2Fevent%2FJapan-earthquake-and-tsunami-of-2011%23ref299861&amp;rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AMarch+11"></span></span>