Earthquake under the Middle Eastern Iburi Region on July 8

[Southern Ishikari Region] was the regional name of the epicenter used in the JMA announcement.

On July 8, 2014 at 18:05 (JST), there was a 5.6 earthquake (maximum seismic intensity 5 Lower) at a depth of 3 km under the middle eastern Iburi region. This event occurred within the crust. The focal mechanism had a compression axis in a WNW-ESE direction (preliminary report).
For the seismic activity since January 2000, in the vicinity of the recent event (Area a), seismic activity has become active since August, 2013.
For the seismic activity since January 1923, in the area around the recent event (Area b), there have sometimes been earthquakes of M5.0 or over. Recently, there was a M4.6 earthquake (maximum seismic intensity 3) on December 2, 2012 under the central Ishikari region, which caused damage with cracking of glasses, cracks in the ceilings, and collapse of slopes (Comprehensive Bibliography of Destructive Earthquakes in Japan, Latest Edition).

Japan Meteorological Agency
[Evaluation of Seismic Activities for June 2014 (July 9, 2014)]