Hundreds dead as Japan is hit by Tsunami

One of the biggest earthquakes in history sparked a devastating tsunami in Japan today, killing hundreds of people, flattening entire towns and causing a full-scale nuclear alert.

The 33-feet high wall of water travelled inland at 60mpHdead as the tsunami swept over Japan's north-eastern coast after the 8.9 magnitude megaquake.

Click on the image on the right to see more pictures from Japan.

One of the biggest earthquakes in history sparked a devastating tsunami in Japan today, killing hundreds of people, flattening entire towns and causing a full-scale nuclear alert.

The 33-feet high wall of water travelled inland at 60mpHdead as the tsunami swept over Japan's north-eastern coast after the 8.9 magnitude megaquake.

This afternoon up to 300 bodies were found along the coastline.

Mass evacuations were taking place as tsunami warnings were issued for the entire Pacific coast, including Hawaii and the west coast of America. Russia was also put on alert.

The tsunami set off by the quake is currently higher than some of the Pacific islands it could wash over, the Red Cross warned.

The British government said it was today doing all it could to help Japan and to offer assistance to British nationals living there.

The huge wave first hit the port of Sendai city, sending ships crashing into the shore and carrying cars and buildings through streets.

A ship carrying around 100 people was among those swept away and a passenger train on the coast was also unaccounted for.

The earthquake, 8,000 times more powerful than the one to hit New Zealand last month, also sparked fires in several areas including Tokyo which is hundreds of miles from the epicentre.

This afternoon, a state of emergency was declared at the Fukushima power plant after the cooling system failed in one of its reactors when it shut down automatically because of the earthquake. Up to 2,000 nearby residents were evacuated.

The official death toll was 90 this afternoon, but it is feared thousands will have lost their lives in the disaster.

Elsewhere fires triggered by the quake were burning out of control up and down the coast, including one at an oil refinery.

The quake struck at 2.46pm local time (5.46am GMT) and was followed by more than a dozen aftershocks, including several at least 6.3, the size of the New Zealand quake. The initial tremor was so strong it was felt 1,500 miles away in the Chinese capital Beijing.

The country's Prime Minister Naoto Kan extended his sympathy to the victims and said an emergency response headquarters had been set up.

The Queen expressed her sadness at the "tragic loss of life" caused by the quake.

"Our prayers and thoughts are with everyone who has been affected by the dreadful disaster," she said.

Prime Minister David Cameron said the earthquake was a "terrible reminder of the destructive power of nature".

He added: "Everyone should be thinking of the country and its people."

Foreign Secretary William Hague said there was so far no news of any British casualties. "I have asked our ambassador in Tokyo to offer all assistance we can."

Firefighters from the West Midlands were on standby to travel to the devastated area.

Are you in Japan? Have you been affected by the earthquake? Send us your comments using the form below.