Strong quake hits northeast Japan, tsunami warning issued

March 9, 2011

By Yoko Kubota Yoko Kubota – 1 hr 31 mins ago

TOKYO (Reuters) – A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.2 struck

off the coast of northeast Japan Wednesday, the Japanese Meteorological Agency

(JMA) said, but there were no reports of damage or injuries.

A tsunami advisory of up to 50 cm (20 inches) was issued for northeastern Japan

after the quake, which occurred at around 11:45 a.m. (0245 GMT), the JMA said,

and a 60 cm (24 inch) wave reached Ofunato port, about 450 km (280 miles) from

Tokyo, Kyodo news agency said.

" First I felt a jolt that pushed from underneath, then a big sideways tremor

that lasted for about 20 seconds, " Yoshiyuki Sato, an official at Kurihara City

in Miyagi prefecture, about 300 km (186 miles) northeast of Tokyo, told Reuters.

" The tremor was relatively big but things did not fall off the shelves in the

city government building, " he said.

The focus of the tremor was 10 km (6 miles) below the seabed off the coast of

Aomori prefecture, public broadcaster NHK said.

The regional utility, Tohoku Electric Power, said its Onagawa nuclear plant was

operating normally after the quake. Tokyo Electric Power Co Inc also said there

was no impact on its power plants in the region.

Bullet trains resumed running in northeastern Japan after stopping briefly,

Kyodo reported.

Japan's northeast Pacific coast, called Sanriku, has suffered from quakes and

tsunamis in the past. In 1933, a magnitude 8.1 quake in the area killed over

3,000 people, and last year fishing facilities were damaged after by tsunami

caused by a strong tremor in Chile.

Earthquakes are common in Japan, one of the world's most seismically active

areas. The country accounts for about 20 percent of the world's earthquakes of

magnitude 6 or greater.

(Additional reporting by Shinichi Saoshiro, Kiyoshi Takenaka, Osamu Tsukimori

and Elaine Lies; Editing by Magnowski)

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