Residents in Sister City Narita, Japan, 'Shaken But OK' After Japan Quake Ripples Throughout Country

A calm has resumed throughout the Peninsula as residents who were evacuated from low-lying areas in San Mateo County earlier today have been told they can now return to their homes, after county officials declared that the has passed.

Dangerous waves and tidal surges were expected between 7:30am and 8am in the wake of the magnitude 8.9 earthquake that struck off the northeast coast of Japan ten hours earlier.

All highways and surface streets are now open, although beach areas and coastal waterways remain subject to unexpected and dangerous waves, according to the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office.

The county's Office of Emergency Services resumed normal operations at 4pm, a decision officials said was based on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's degradation of the hazard notification to an advisory from a warning.

San Mateo County had no reported damage, injuries or loss of life related to the ocean surge, officials said.

As the tsunami warning went out this morning, many San Bruno residents were anxious to find out if the residents of San Bruno's , were OK after the monstrous earthquake rippled throughout a large part of the country.

Johnna Cabrera, who coordinates San Bruno's student cultural exchange program with Narita, received an email at about midnight today from Hiroko Okada, the director of the Narita Friendship Society, saying he and others were shaken up but OK after the earthquake.

Hiroko told Cabrera that Tokyo International Airport in Narita was shut down, then re-opened briefly to let planes land, and then closed again. Media reports say the airport and Tokyo's other airport in Haneda are back open again and flights have resumed. Narita is about a two-hour bus ride from Tokyo and south of Sendai, the city near where the earthquake originated.

Cabrera also said she heard from other friends in Nartia and Tokyo and, "quite understandably, they thought it was a frightening experience."

"I'm certain the many and substantial aftershocks could and would rattle even those with nerves of steel after such a hugh and devastating earthquake," she said in an email. "I'm just glad our friends in Narita are relatively safe at this point."

Other San Bruno residents interviewed around town said they also had heard from friends in Japan about the devastation.

“The entire country felt the quake,” said Cecile deForest, formerly an area teacher now working at an international school in Hokkaido. She has flown in and out of Narita airport "tons of times," she said.

“It was bad. Aftershocks are very disconcerting. One of our teachers is trying to reach her parents in Sendai. The kids were so calm. But the teachers were concerned because the length was so long...3 minutes, 30 seconds."

"No one I spoke with had ever experienced anything like that," she continued. "Then we had three very strong aftershocks right away. That was worrying. We have had over 30, some more than 7 magnitude.”

After the lunch rush at , Jae Sherrod finally had a minute to watch televised images of devastation.

“I am hoping my friend is OK,” she said. “I don’t know anything yet.”

Nagano, a port city, brings most of its seafood. The restaurant has already been told to expect prices to jump, said Mei Lee, an employee.

—Bay City News Service contributed to this report.