Strong quake hits Hokkaido, northern Japan

A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.1 hit a wide area of Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido yesterday, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said.

Public broadcaster NHK said at least eight people were injured but there were reports of widespread casualties or serious damage from the quake, which hit at 3:32 a.m. (18:32 GMT).

"This is considered a major earthquake. It has the potential to cause damage and casualties," said US Geological Survey spokesman John Bellini. But he said because the quake hit a relatively sparsely populated area there would not be a lot of damage expected.

One tsunami wave of 10 cm hit around 4 a.m. (1900 GMT), JAM said. The agency urged people along the coast to stay on guard.

Masahiro Yamamoto, a JMA official, told a news conference the area has been hit by earthquakes of magnitude 6.5 or stronger every 10 years or so.

"We believe there is no unusual seismic activity," he said, adding minor aftershocks had hit the area and there would likely be more.

The focus of the earthquake was about 50 km under the surface of the Pacific Ocean of southeastern Hokkaido about 800 km north of Tokyo, NHK said.

Trains were halted in the eastern part of the island and more than 600 homes suffered power outages, NHK said. But power began to be restored within about an hour.

Masaaki Ohta, an official at the Rausu town office on the eastern coast of Hokkaido, told NHK: "There was a strong jolt from side to side but nothing fell off the shelves."