7.3-magnitude quake strikes northeastern Japan, injures reported

Photo taken with a mobile phone shows passengers stranded in a JR Yokosuka Line train following an earthquake, Japan, March 16, 2022. (Photo by Sun Jialin/Xinhua)

TOKYO, March 17 (Xinhua) -- A 7.3-magnitude earthquake hit northeastern Japan on late Wednesday night, leaving several people with mild injuries, according to local government.

The temblor occurred at around 11:36 p.m. Wednesday local time (1436 GMT) with a north latitude of 37.7 and an east longitude of 141.7 and at depth of 60 km. Tsunami waves were observed after the Japan Meteorological Agency issued a tsunami warning.

Strong shaking was felt in the country's northeastern and eastern areas, especially in Miyagi and Fukushima Prefectures where the quake logged six upper on the Japanese seismic intensity scale which peaks at seven.

Several people in the two prefectures were admitted to hospitals after suffering from mild injuries, such as a head bump or an injured ankle. So far there is no official report of deaths or severe injured cases from the earthquake.

A tsunami warning of up to one meter was issued to coastal areas in the Miyagi and Fukushima Prefectures, with residents urged to stay away from the coast.

The earliest tsunami wave arrived at Ishinomaki city in eastern Miyagi Prefecture at 11:50 p.m. Wednesday local time (1450 GMT), with an estimated height of one meter and an actual height of 20 centimeters.

Multiple tsunami waves of estimated one-meter height also arrived around 00:20 a.m. Thursday local time (1520 GMT) in several harbor cities in Miyagi and Fukushima Prefectures.

Transportation disruption was reported following the earthquake as a Tohoku Shinkansen bullet train derailed partly but the 100 passengers aboard were not injured, said the Shinkansen operator.

In addition, east Nippon Expressway Company said it has closed several sections of expressways, including the Tohoku Expressway in Osaki, Miyagi Prefecture, and Joban Expressway in Soma, Fukushima.

The quake caused blackout in Fukushima's Soma, according to the city office.

The capital city of Tokyo also detected strong tremors, and power outage has been reported in parts of Tokyo and nearby areas after the quake.

The Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) and Tohoku Electric Power Network Company said about 2.2 million homes in total lost power, among which about 700,000 households were in Tokyo.

TEPCO, which is also the operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, said workers were checking whether there were damages. The plant's condition was "basically okay," according to a government official.

Spent nuclear fuel pool was shut down at Fukushima Daini nuclear plant following the powerful quake, but a part of the facility has been restored, the operator of the plant said.

Meanwhile, Japan Atomic Power Co. said it is assessing the situation at its Tokai No. 2 nuclear plant in nearby Ibaraki Prefecture, and no abnormalities were detected at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant in Niigata prefecture.

The Japanese prime minister's office set up an emergency center in response to the powerful quake.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said that he instructed officials to gather relevant information and make utmost efforts to rescue the injured and respond to those affected by the quake.