Japan marks 5th anniversary of Fukushima quake, nuclear disaster

Tokyo

JAPAN paused on Friday to mark five years since an offshore earthquake spawned a monster tsunami that left about 18,500 people dead or missing along its north-eastern coast and sparked the worst nuclear disaster in a quarter century.

Emperor Akihito, Empress Michiko, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and other participants at a national ceremony in Tokyo bowed their heads along with residents across the affected region at 2:46 pm (0546 GMT) - the exact moment on March 11, 2011 the Magnitude 9 quake struck under the Pacific Ocean.