Here is what's happening in Japan at 4:40 am pst:

Developing story beginning at 4:40 am, pst.
updated 4:50 am / 5:04 am . . . . final update 7:56 am

Live coverage on YouTube can be see here. <<

The live report has 23 dead with more than 200 people "washed away" (5:27 am pst)

5:46 am pst - 300 bodies have been found on Japan's northeast coast and a passenger train is missing.

Our final note on this post (7:56 am) reminds the reader of the potential effects this
natural disaster will have on financial entities throughout the world, but especially, Japan.
Japan has never fully recovered from a financial collapse of a decade ago . . . now this.

Currently (5:10 am) I cannot find video with embedded codes. Click on this link to see the tsunami wave (13 foot high) that initially swep through the northeast part of the island nation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DSSssHxm4Y and again at this location.

Wave expected to hit Hawaii in 9 minutes from now -- 4:58 am pst. 53 nations have tsunami warnings.

No damage to our country is expected.

The final number is 8.9 -- the 5th strongest earthquake in recorded history. 4 million are without electricity. 10 meter high waves have been created because of the quake. 63 are dead and nearly 60 are missing.

Fox News reports 33 feet high waves in some areas.

A 13 foot waves moved through much of the country (Japan).

Out in the Pacific Ocean, there is a rather involved system that measures ocean levels, offering some warning as to the actual size of pending tsunamis.

It is raining and the temp is 35F .


Hundreds of after-shocks have occurred with the strongest being 7.4 magnitude. Strong after-shocks are expected for weeks. Travel to Japan is discouraged until after April 1.

A 6 foot wave is moving towards Hawaii at 500 miles per hour that will strike the island state around 5:20 am (pst) this morning and will involve the coast of our country before 8 am. Three foot waves are expected on the West Coast line. Beaches are not being closed. Apparently, there are several waves in this tsunami.

A tsuanami warning has been issued for most of the Pacific Theater.

Building codes in Japan must be relatively involved. As I watch the morning televised coverage, I am amazed at how many buildings are standing, but heavily damaged, of course.

Facts of the quake from the USGS:

Earthquake Details

• This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.

Magnitude	5.2 - Editor note: final report is 8.9. First tremor was 5.2.
Date-Time	Friday, March 11, 2011 at 12:33:18 UTC Friday, March 11, 2011 at 09:33:18 PM at epicenter
Location	38.374°N, 142.590°E
Depth	29.7 km (18.5 miles)
Region	NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
Distances	150 km (93 miles) E (84°) from Sendai, Honshu, Japan 195 km (121 miles) SE (139°) from Morioka, Honshu, Japan 199 km (124 miles) ENE (68°) from Fukushima, Honshu, Japan 393 km (244 miles) NE (39°) from TOKYO, Japan
Location Uncertainty	horizontal +/- 21.4 km (13.3 miles); depth +/- 3.8 km (2.4 miles)
Parameters	NST= 47, Nph= 48, Dmin=438.6 km, Rmss=1.17 sec, Gp=130°, M-type=body wave magnitude (Mb), Version=4
Source	U.S. Geological Survey, National Earthquake Information Center: World Data Center for Seismology, Denver
Event ID	usc0001y8c