Japan issues tsunami warning after magnitude 7.6 earthquake

A powerful magnitude 7.6 earthquake has shaken Japan, prompting tsunami warnings and orders for residents to evacuate.A tsunami as high as 3 metres (10ft) could hit the country’s north-eastern coast after the earthquake occurred offshore at 11.15pm local time (2.15pm GMT), the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said.Tsunami warnings were issued for the prefectures of Hokkaido, Aomori and Iwate, and tsunamis from 20-50cm (7-18in) high were observed at several ports, JMA said.The epicentre of the quake was 50 miles (80km) off the coast of Aomori prefecture, at a depth of 30 miles, the agency added.On Japan’s one-to-seven scale of seismic intensity, the tremor registered as an “upper six” in Aomori prefecture – a quake strong enough to make it impossible to keep standing or move without crawling. In such tremors, most heavy furniture can collapse and wall tiles and windowpanes are damaged in many buildings.East Japan Railway suspended some services in the area, which was also hit by the massive 9.0 magnitude quake in March 2011.No irregularities were reported at nuclear power plants in the region run by Tohoku Electric Power and Hokkaido Electric Power, the utilities said. Tohoku Electric did say, however, that thousands were without power.Japan is one of the world’s most earthquake-prone countries, with a tremor occurring at least every five minutes.Located in the “Ring of Fire” arc of volcanoes and oceanic trenches partly encircling the Pacific Basin, Japan accounts for about 20% of the world’s earthquakes of magnitude 6.0 or greater.More details soon …