Magnitude 7.2 quake hits Japan, tsunami warning issued

In Japan, an arthquake struck northeastern part, including Miyagi on Saturday, hitting areas devastated by the 2011 disaster and generating a tsunami of 1 metre, public broadcaster NHK said. The quake hit the coast of Miyagi Prefecture at 6:26 p.m. (0926 GMT) and had a magnitude of 7.2 at a depth of 60 km (37 miles), the Japan Meteorological Agency said.Tohoku Electric Power Co has halted the Onagawa nuclear plant and is checking for any irregularities, NHK said. Local utilities were inspecting the status of the region's nuclear plants, and local railway firms suspended services, including shinkansen bullet trains. The US Geological Service put the strength of the quake at 7.0-magnitude.

There were no immediate reports of damage, according to Takashi Yokota, an official of Miyagi prefecture's disaster management office. The Nuclear Regulation Authority said there had been no reports of abnormality at the area's nuclear facilities, including the crippled Fukushima Daiichi plant, Onagawa nuclear plant and various smaller facilities and experimental nuclear reactors. Japan sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", an arc of intense seismic activity that stretches through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin.