North Korea fired a ballistic missile into the waters off its eastern coast on Thursday. The launch prompted an evacuation order that was later lifted in northern Japan, CNN reported.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff announced on Thursday morning local time that North Korea had fired at least one unidentified ballistic missile into the waters off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula.

Initially, the Japanese government urged residents in the northern prefecture of Hokkaido to take shelter after the North Korean launch.

However, the Japanese Coast Guard later announced that it believed there was no longer a possibility of the missile falling on Hokkaido or its surroundings.

In similar test launches, Japan has previously warned civilians to take shelter in place, as reported by CNN.

Written by staff