7.5 magnitude earthquake in Japan, Tsunami warning issued

Tokyo : A powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 7.5 struck northeastern and northern Japan on Monday, with a tsunami warning issued, the country’s weather agency said.

An 80-centimeter tsunami was observed at Kuji port in Iwate Prefecture, the Japanese Met Agency said.

The 4:53 p.m. quake registered an upper 5 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 and occurred at a depth of 10 kilometers, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency, state media Kyodo cited.

“Notable quake, preliminary info: M 7.4 – 100 km ENE of Miyako, Japan,” the USGS said. The earthquake’s magnitude was initially estimated to be 7.4 but was later revised up.

The Japan Meteorological Agency has warned of quakes of a similar scale for a week, Kyodo reported.

Public broadcaster NHK reported that the quake struck at a depth of 10 km.

The Japanese weather agency issued tsunami warnings for the Pacific coasts of Hokkaido, Aomori, and Iwate prefectures, forecasting tsunami waves of up to 3 meters to arrive immediately.

No abnormalities were reported at the Higashidori and Onagawa nuclear plants in Aomori and Miyagi prefectures or at the Fukushima Daiichi and Daini nuclear power plants in Fukushima Prefecture, according to their operators, as per the Kyodo news agency.

Addressing reporters at her office, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi urged people in quake-affected areas to evacuate to higher ground.

JR East said it has suspended services of the Tohoku Shinkansen bullet train between Tokyo and Shin-Aomori stations. (ANI)