IWAKI, Japan (Reuters) – A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.1 hits off the coast of eastern Japan on Saturday, shaking buildings and triggering widespread blackouts, however there appeared to be no major damage, and no tsunami warning was issued.
The epicenter was off the coast of Fukushima prefecture at a depth of 60 km (36 miles), the Japan Meteorological Agency mentioned. It hit at 11:08 p.m. local time (1408 GMT) and shook buildings within the capital Tokyo and elsewhere.
No tsunami warning had been issued, the meteorological agency mentioned.
A Reuters cameraman on location in Fukushima mentioned his tenth-floor hotel room shook heavily for a while. One man at the hotel was taken to hospital after falling and hitting his head on a door, the Reuters cameraman mentioned.
Although injured, the man was still able to walk, the cameraman mentioned.
Footage from tv also showed broken glass from shop fronts, whereas Kyodo news reported about a dozen injuries, though none immediately appeared to be grave.
Some 950,000 households were initially without power, government spokesman Katsunobu Kato told a briefing carried on public broadcaster NHK. The blackouts appeared to be concentrated in northeast Japan, including Fukushima and neighboring prefectures.
There were no irregularities at the Fukushima Daiichi and Daini nuclear power plants, or on the Kahiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant, owner Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings mentioned.
The utility also mentioned there was no change in the radiation levels around its plants.
Kato mentioned there were no irregularities at the Onagawa nuclear facilities.
The quake hit off of Fukushima just weeks before the 10-year anniversary of the March 11, 2011, quake that devastated northeast Japan and triggered a massive tsunami that led to the world’s worst nuclear crisis in a quarter of a century – one centered at the Daiichi facility.
Earthquakes are common in Japan, one of the world’s most seismically active areas. Japan accounts for about 20% of the world’s earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater.