Update: Japan Earthquake of 7.0 magnitude and Tsunami warning
Update: Japan Earthquake of 7.0 magnitude and Tsunami warning

According to DW, Waves of up to 1 meter have hit parts of Japan's coast following a 7.2 magnitude earthquake near the Miyagi prefecture.

The first tsunami waves of up to 1 meter (3.2 feet) hit land shortly after the earthquake, local television channel NHK reported.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority said no abnormalities have been detected at nuclear power plants in the region, including the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, which suffered meltdowns in the 2011 quake and tsunami, AP report.

Video Japan Earthquake:

A 7.0 preliminary magnitude earthquake has struck Japan off the coast of Ishinomaki, a city located just 65 miles (104 km) from Fukushima. A tsunami warning was issued earlier Saturday but has now been downgraded to a "tsunami forecast" of slight changes in sea level. The US Tsunami Warning System says there is no warning, advisory, watch or threat of tsunami associated with the Japan quake, CNN report.

Officials said that there were no immediate reports of injury or major damage. At least 200 households were left without electricity, Japanese Media report.

Japan's Meteorological Agency (JMA) said that the quake hit at 6:09 p.m. local time (09:09 GMT/UTC) at a depth of 60 kilometers (37 miles) in the Pacific water just off the coast of the Miyagi region. Several train services in the region were also suspended as a precautionary measure.

A video shared by NHK showed how the earthquake was felt in Sendai city in Miyagi prefecture.

Volcanodiscovery: Major magnitude 7.0 earthquake at 44 km depth

20 Mar 09:17 UTC: First to report: GFZ after 8 minutes.

20 Mar 09:18: Magnitude recalculated from 7.0 to 6.9.

20 Mar 09:45: Hypocenter depth recalculated from 68.0 to 44.0 km (from 42 to 27 mi). Epicenter location corrected by 2.8 km (1.8 mi) towards WNW.

Update Sat, 20 Mar 2021, 09:21

Magnitude 6.9 earthquake strikes near Ishinomaki, Ishinomaki Shi, Miyagi, Japan

6.9 quake 20 Mar 6:09 pm (GMT +9)

6.9 quake 20 Mar 6:09 pm (GMT +9)

The 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck near Ishinomaki, Ishinomaki Shi, Miyagi, Japan. The tremor was recorded early evening on Saturday 20 March 2021 at 6:09 pm local time, at an intermediate depth of 73 km below the surface.

The event was filed by the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), the first seismological agency to report it.

A second report was later issued by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), which listed it as a magnitude 6.9 earthquake as well.

Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should have been widely felt by almost everyone in the area of the epicenter. It might have caused light to moderate damage.

Moderate shaking probably occurred in Ishinomaki (pop. 117,200) located 50 km from the epicenter, Yamoto (pop. 32,000) 57 km away, Ōfunato (pop. 35,400) 68 km away, Shiogama (pop. 59,500) 75 km away, Furukawa (pop. 76,300) 80 km away, Ichinoseki (pop. 63,000) 81 km away, Sendai (pop. 1,063,100) 90 km away, and Mizusawa (pop. 61,300) 98 km away.

Pacific 'Ring of Fire'

Saturday's earthquake came not long after the country marked ten years since the deadly 9.0-magnitude quake on March 11, 2011, also affecting the Miyagi region.

The event a decade ago led to a catastrophic triple disaster as a disastrous tsunami was unleashed and the Fukushima nuclear plant went into meltdown. Many people were injured last month when another strong earthquake struck.

Japan is on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," an area along the edge of the Pacific ocean which is characterized by strong seismic activity.

Construction regulations in Japan mean that buildings must be built to withstand the frequent earthquakes.