Powerful earthquake hits Japan near Fukushima
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck off the coast of eastern Japan, close to Fukushima, late Saturday evening leaving at least 12 people injured.
The epicenter of the quake, which struck at 11:07 p.m. local time (9.07 a.m. ET), was located 45.9 miles (73.9 kilometers) northeast of Namie, a coastal town 60 miles from Fukushima, according to the United States Geological Survey.
The depth of the earthquake was about 36 miles. Injuries were reported in Fukushima and Miyagi prefecture, according to state broadcaster NHK. No tsunami warning has been issued for Saturday’s earthquake, and no abnormalities have been reported at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, according to Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, Katsunobu Kato.
On March 11, 2011, a 9.0-magnitude earthquake hit Japan. More than 20,000 people died or went missing in the quake and tsunami, while hundreds of thousands more lost their homes.
The earthquake also caused the country’s worst nuclear disaster — three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant melted down, releasing radioactive materials into the air and more than 100,000 people were evacuated from the area.
Some 830,000 households in the Kanto region, which includes greater Tokyo, and about 90,000 households in Tohoku region are without power following Saturday’s quake, Kato added.
Kato also said Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has instructed the government to survey the damage from the quake, conduct rescue efforts where necessary, and to relay information to the public in a timely manner.
An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the time of the earthquake. It happened at 11:07 p.m. local time.
