Tsunami warning as strong quake hits northern Japan

TOKYO, Japan – Japan issued a tsunami warning on Wednesday after a 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck off its northeastern coast, warning of a wave as high as 50 centimetres (20 inches) and urging people to evacuate.

The meteorological agency gave the tsunami warning after the tremor hit some 210 kilometres (130 miles) off the northern island of Hokkaido. But US monitors said there was no Pacific-wide tsunami threat.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said the epicenter was about 146 miles (235 kilometers) south of Kushiro, Japan, on Hokkaido, Japan’s northern island. It was a relatively shallow 16 miles (26 kilometers) from the ocean floor.

The first wave was expected to hit land at 6:40 pm (0940 GMT), the agency said, and it issued an evacuation advisory for people living near the coastline. A tsunami of about a half-meter was expected for Aomori and Iwate prefectures.

The warning comes nearly a year to the day after a 9.0-magnitude earthquake triggered a monster tsunami that killed more than 19,000 people and crippled Japan’s Fukushima nuclear plant, sparking an ongoing crisis.

Iwate was in the region heavily damaged by last year’s earthquake and tsunami.

There were no reports of damage at nuclear facilities in the area affected by Wednesday’s 6.8 quake, the Kyodo news agency said.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said there was no threat there or across the Pacific.