Near the 1995 new year , Misawa experienced two earthquakes — 7.5 and 7.9 on the Richter scale at the epicenter off the coast of Hachinohe . On September 25 , 2003 a magnitude 8.3 earthquake occurred off the east coast of Hokkaidō which was strongly felt in Misawa and all of Aomori Prefecture . Damage to Misawa Air Base was limited to burst water mains , cosmetic cracks in walls and personal property damage . There were no reports of damage to the base runway . This was the largest earthquake reported by the U.S. Geological Survey ( USGS ) for 2003
a magnitude 8.3 earthquake
2003 Hokkaidō earthquake
Misawa Air Base