Old video from Myanmar earthquake goes viral linking to recent earthquake in Japan

A powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off the northeastern coast of Japan on 20 April, 2026. The quake occurred at a depth of 10 to 19 km in the Pacific Ocean off the Sanriku coast. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) initially issued tsunami warnings forecasting waves of up to 3 metres (10 feet). Against this backdrop, a video showing intense shaking captured inside a supermarket is going viral on social media. Sharing the video, users claimed that the footage is from the recent earthquake in Japan. 

Let’s check the truth.

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Fact check:

We began our investigation with a reverse image search on Google, and the results led us to a tweet by the Turkish news media outlet TRT Haber that contained a similar video of the viral clip. It was uploaded on 15 May 2025 under the caption “New footage has emerged of the moment a 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar.” According to the caption, the video is from Myanmar. 

We also discovered that the same footage was uploaded on an Instagram page belonging to a Turkish national television channel. In that footage, we can clearly see that the timestamp is 28 March 2025. The description states, “The moment of the 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar was captured by a security camera in a supermarket.”

On 28 March 2025 a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the Sagaing Region of Myanmar, with an epicenter close to Mandalay, the country’s second-largest city. It was the most powerful earthquake to strike Myanmar since 1912 reportedly killing more than 2,000 people and injuring over 4,000. The earthquake caused extensive damage in Myanmar and significant damage in neighbouring Thailand. 

Based on this evidence, we can understand that old CCTV footage from the Myanmar earthquake goes viral, linking to the recent earthquake in Japan.

Conclusion

Fact Crescendo found the claim made along with the viral video to be Misleading. This video shows footage from a supermarket’s security camera in Myanmar when the earthquake hit the country in March 2025. Not related to the recent earthquake in Japan.