7.4 quake in north kills 2, hurts dozens
TOKYO >> A powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Fukushima in northern Japan on Wednesday night, leaving two dead, triggering a tsunami advisory, rattling homes and temporarily causing widespread power outages.
The region is part of northern Japan that was devastated by a deadly 9.0 quake and tsunami 11 years ago that also triggered nuclear plant meltdowns, spewing massive radiation that still makes some parts uninhabitable.
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said two people were killed and 94 others were injured, including four seriously. A man in his 60s in Soma City in Fukushima died after falling form the second floor of his house while trying to evacuate, and a man in his 70s panicked and suffered a heart attack, Kyodo News reported.
The Japan Meteorological Agency later lifted its low-risk advisory issued along the coasts of Fukushima and Miyagi early Thursday.
Tsunami waves of 11 inches reached shore in Ishinomaki, about 242 miles northeast of Tokyo.
The agency upgraded the magnitude of the quake to 7.4 from the initial 7.3, and the depth from 36 miles below the sea to 35 miles.
NHK footage showed broken walls of a department store building fell to the ground and shards of windows scattered on the street near the main train station in the inland prefectural capital of Fukushima city. Roads were cracked and water poured out from pipes underground.
Footage also showed furniture and appliances smashed to the floor at apartments in Fukushima. Cosmetics and other merchandise at convenience stores fell from shelves and scattered on the floor. In Yokohama, near Tokyo, an electric pole nearly fell.
The Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, which operates the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant where the cooling systems failed after the 2011 disaster, said workers found no abnormalities at the site, which was in the process of being decommissioned.
Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority said a fire alarm went off at the turbine building of No. 5 reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi but there was no actual fire.
Water pumps for the spent fuel cooling pool at two of the four reactors at Fukushima Daini briefly stopped, but later resumed operation. Fukushima Daini, which survived the 2011 tsunami, is set for decommissioning.
More than 2.2 million homes were temporarily without electricity in 14 prefectures, including the Tokyo region, but power was restored at most places by the morning, except for about 37,000 homes in the hardest hit Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures, according to the Tohoku Electric Power Co. which services the region.
The quake shook large parts of eastern Japan, including Tokyo, where buildings swayed violently.