Strong quake, small tsunamis hit southern Japan with minor damage

Broadcaster NHK showed footage of traffic lights shaking violently in Miyazaki on Kyushu's southeast coast.

A powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 shook southern Japan on Thursday (Aug 8) but no major damage was reported and only relatively minor tsunami waves lashed the coast.

The quake hit at 4.42pm (7.42am GMT) off Kyushu at a depth of 25km, the United States Geological Survey said.

 

The USGS had initially reported two strong quakes, with magnitudes of 6.9 and 7.1, but later said there had only been one tremor.

"This error has been fixed. There was one event," the USGS said.

Broadcaster NHK showed footage of traffic lights shaking violently in Miyazaki on Kyushu's southeast coast.

"The surface of the sea is wavering. I felt an intense jolt when the quake happened which lasted for between 30 seconds and a minute," one local official told NHK.

The broadcaster also reported that three people were hurt in Miyazaki but gave no indication of the extent of their injuries.

Tsunamis of up to 1m were initially expected to arrive or had arrived in some coastal areas in Kyushu and Shikoku islands, broadcaster NHK reported.

The agency also said a small tsunami was possible in Chiba, about 850km from the epicentre.