Earthquake shakes Japan awake - 6.7

  • Breaking
  • 22/06/2011

A magnitude-6.7 earthquake rattled northeast Japan early this morning in the same area where a massive quake triggered a deadly tsunami in March.

There have been no immediate reports of injuries or damage.

VIDEO: The moment the quake struck Japan

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a tsunami warning for the region after the quake, but cancelled it about an hour later.

The temblor struck the region of the Pacific where a magnitude-9.0 quake hit on March 11, triggering a huge tsunami. At least 23,000 people were killed or left missing in those disasters, which destroyed hundreds of homes, offices and factories in northeastern Japan.

Today's quake hit about 47km off the shore of Iwate prefecture at 6:51am (local time), the Japan Meteorological Agency said. Much of the coast in the area is still heavily damaged from March's disasters.

The US Pacific Tsunami warning centre said it did not expect a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami.

The quake, 32km deep, caused tremors across the northern half of the country, including Tokyo, which is about 524km to the southwest.

It was followed by several smaller aftershocks, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Japan is located on the Ring of Fire, an arc of volcanoes and fault lines spanning the Pacific Basin, and is regularly hit by earthquakes.

AP

source: newshub archive