A strong quake registering a preliminary magnitude of 6.0 struck western Japan early Saturday morning and caused a number of injuries, but no tsunami warning was issued, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.
The 5:33 a.m. quake registered lower 6 on Japan's seismic intensity scale of 7 on Awaji Island in Hyogo Prefecture. The quake originated near the island at a depth of around 10 kilometers, the agency said on its website.
The central government has set up a task force at the prime minister's office and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe instructed the Cabinet's crisis management officials to gather information on quake damage and make every effort to help those who are injured, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters.
The National Police Agency said 19 injuries, including 10 in Hyogo, had been confirmed in five prefectures as of 10 a.m. The Hyogo prefectural government said 14 injuries had been reported by 9:45 a.m.
Local officials on Awaji Island said they have received some reports of damage to building roofs and walls but that no large-scale structural damage has been confirmed.
No quake damage was observed at nuclear facilities in western Japan including the Ikata power plant in Ehime Prefecture, the Shimane plant in Shimane Prefecture and an atomic laboratory in Osaka, their operators said. The Oi nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture, the only plant which has currently operating reactors in Japan, was unaffected.
Many train services in Hyogo and surrounding areas were suspended for safety inspections, but they have mostly resumed operations, operators said.
Major airports in the area suffered no damage, the transport ministry said. Four planes delayed landing at Kansai International Airport in Osaka due to the quake, but they all arrived safely.
Other major infrastructure such as roads and bridges were unaffected and there has been no power outage.
In Hyogo, a powerful quake originating off the northern coast of Awaji Island caused extensive damage in Kobe and surrounding areas in 1995, killing over 6,000 people.
The meteorological agency warned of possible aftershocks as strong as lower 5 on the Japanese intensity scale for a week or so.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
