A strong earthquake hit southwestern Japan late Monday, the Meteorological Agency said. No tsunami warning was issued.
The 11:27 p.m. temblor registered upper 5 on the Japanese seismic scale of 7 in part of Oita Prefecture, the first time a quake of that level has hit the area since April last year, which was preceded by a series of strong quakes that rocked neighboring Kumamoto Prefecture.
It originated around 40 km underground in Bungo Channel running between Kyushu and Shikoku. It also registered a 4 on the same seismic scale in other parts of Oita and some areas in Kumamoto and Miyazaki prefectures. No injuries or damage have been reported so far.
The meteorological agency warned in the next week or so aftershocks measuring up to upper 5 on the scale may occur in areas shaken hard by Tuesday’s quake.
There are no abnormalities at the Ikata nuclear power plant in Ehime Prefecture, the Sendai plant in Kagoshima Prefecture or the Genkai plant in Saga Prefecture, the plants’ operators said.
The government has set up a liaison unit at the crisis management center in the Prime Minister’s Office.(KYODO, JIJI)
Link: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/06/21/national/strong-quake-hits-oita-prefecture-no-tsunami-warning-issued/#.WUoavfmGOvE
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