A magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck Saturday off the coast of Japan's Fukushima prefecture, which was home to one of the world's worst nuclear disasters almost a decade ago.
The Japan Meteorological Agency said the quake — which it initially said had a magnitude of 7.1 — struck at 11:08 p.m. local time (9:08 a.m. ET) at a depth of 34 miles. Fourteen aftershocks were recorded, it said, adding that a tsunami warning had not been issued.
The quake was also felt in Japan's capital, Tokyo.
"There have been no anomalies reported from any of the nuclear facilities," Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga told a press conference. "Everything is normal."
Checks were still being carried out to determine the number injured, he said, urging people not to venture outdoors and to be prepared for aftershocks.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told a separate news conference earlier in Tokyo that almost 850,000 households had been left without power in areas surrounding Tokyo and northern Japan.
7.3 magnitude earthquake hits Japan, tsunami warning issued - report
REUTERS, JERUSALEM POST STAFF
A strong earthquake jolted Japan's northeast coast on Wednesday, shaking buildings, leaving parts of Tokyo without power and triggering a tsunami warning.
The tremor registered magnitude 7.3 and as high as a 6-plus on the Japanese shaking intensity scale in some areas -- too strong for people to stand, according to public broadcaster NHK.
This was corroborated by the USGS, which also registered it as 7.3, though the EMSC said it was 7.4.
Tokyo Electric Power Company 9501.T said that around 2 million households were without power and that it was checking the condition of reactors at the Fukushima plant, NHK said.
Authorities warned residents in Fukushima, Miyagi and Yamagata prefectures to expect aftershocks.
Fukushima is home to the Fukushima Daichi nuclear plant, a large nuclear power plant where a 2011 earthquake caused a severe disaster. However, the plant, along with its sister plant Fukushima Daini, were never reactivated following the earthquake and have been decommissioned.Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the government was working to assess the extent of any damage after the tremor.
This is a developing story.
Japan earthquake: Tsunami warning as 7.3 tremor hits Fukushima and rocks Tokyo
A huge 7.3-magnitude earthquake has hit Fukushima, Japan - triggering a tsunami warning with people urged to get away from coastal areas.
Terrified witnesses have said buildings were left shaking following what felt like two quakes, with the second lasting for around two minutes.
It is not yet clear how many people were injured following the quake, which happened shortly after 11.30pm local time, or the scale of damage caused.
The same region was hit by a major quake followed by a tsunami in 2011 that triggered the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
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Four horsemen saddling up with 666 (Alexis Tsipras) in the lead on the white horse and water borne nuclear contamination Chernobyl (Wormwood) plus Fukushima.
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