Authorities issued a tsunami warning for Japan on Saturday after a magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck off the coast of Miyagi prefecture.
Tsunami waves of up to 1 meter (3.2 feet) hit land shortly after the earthquake, local television channel NHK reported.
As a precaution, nearly 7,000 residents of the town of Watari were evacuated.
Officials said that there were no immediate reports of major damage. However, two elderly women were injured.
At least 200 households were left without electricity and local rail services were suspended.
About an hour after the quake, the tsunami alerts were lifted, broadcaster NHK said.
However, the public was warned not to go near the shore.
Precautionary measures taken
Japan's Meteorological Agency (JMA) said that the quake hit at 6:09 p.m. local time (09:09 GMT/UTC) at a depth of 60 kilometers (37 miles) in the Pacific water just off the coast of Miyagi prefecture.
A video shared by NHK showed how the earthquake was felt in Sendai city in Miyagi prefecture.
Tremors were also felt in the capital, Tokyo.
The Tohoku Electric Power Co reportedly shut down its Onagawa nuclear plant as it checked for any irregularities, while the Tokyo Electric Power checked on the condition of the Fukushima Dai-Ichi power station, which was wrecked by the 2011 quake.
There were no reports of irregularities, the country's nuclear regulator told Reuters in an email.
Several train services in the region were also suspended as a precautionary measure.
The US Consulate in Sapporo told people in the area to "seek higher ground."
Japan lifts tsunami advisory after strong earthquake off northeast
Reuters
Japan's meteorological agency lifted a tsunami advisory around an hour after a 6.9-magnitude earthquakestruck off the country's northeastern coast on Saturday, causing no immediate damage or injuries.
The strong quake, which was originally estimated as 7.2 magnitude, hit at 6:09 pm (0909 GMT) in Pacific waters off the Miyagi region with a depth of about 60 kilometres (37 miles), the JMA said, issuing an advisory for tsunami waves of around one metre.
Thousands of households received evacuation warnings over the tsunami alert, which was lifted at around 7:30pm (1030 GMT), prompting municipalities to also end the evacuation measures.
Local utilities and the nation's nuclear authority said the region's nuclear plants did not show any abnormalities after the latest quake, although local railway firms suspended services, including the high-speed Shinkansen bullet trains.
The US Geological Service put the strength of the quake at 7.0 magnitude.
The quake and tsunami advisory come not long after Japan marked a decade since the catastrophic 9.0-magnitude earthquake of March 11, 2011, which triggered a killer tsunami and the Fukushima nuclear meltdown.
The so-called triple disaster affected Japan's northeast, including Miyagi.
Some residents of coastal communities said they had fled to higher ground after the advisory was issued Saturday evening.
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