7.3-magnitude quake hits Japan, no damage reported
26 Oct 2013
An earthquake of magnitude 7.3 struck offshore Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant early today, triggering small tsunamis. No damage was reported.
According to an earthquake official with the Japan Meteorological Agency, the quake came as an aftershock of the magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami that devastated the area in 2011, leaving about 19,000 dead and crippling the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant.
No damage was caused and only one minor injury was reported, according to the national Fire and Disaster Management Agency.
Though areas along the coast were hit by tsunamis of up to 15 inches, a tsunami advisory was lifted less than two hours after the quake.
The epicentre of the 2:10 am Tokyo time (1710 GMT) quake lay around 290 kilometres off Fukushima, and it was felt in Tokyo, 480 kilometres away.
The operator of the troubled Fukushima plant, Tokyo Electric Power Co, said no damage or abnormalities had been found.
The quake prompted the agency to issue a tsunami warning and in the prefectures of Iwate and Miyagi, thousands were asked to evacuate.