A large earthquake with a magnitude of 7.6 occurred in northeastern Japan.
The earthquake occurred at 23:15 (14:15 GMT) at a depth of 50 kilometers (31 miles) about 80 kilometers off the coast of Aomori province, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.
This prompted a tsunami warning, which has now been downgraded to a watch, with some areas seeing waves as high as 40 cm (16 inches).
Local media reported that some people in the area were injured and train services were halted as a precaution.
Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world, with an earthquake occurring at least every five minutes.
According to Reuters, evacuation orders have been issued for approximately 90,000 residents.
Japanese public broadcaster NHK quoted a hotel employee in Hachinohe as saying that there were multiple injuries.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara announced that the government set up a response room within the Prime Minister’s Crisis Management Center and convened an emergency team.
He added, “We are doing our best to assess the damage situation and implement emergency disaster response measures such as rescue and relief activities.”
AFP via Getty ImagesTohoku Electric Power Company announced that no abnormalities were reported at the Higashidori and Onagawa nuclear power plants due to the earthquake.
Japanese authorities told the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that nothing had been found at the site of the shut down Fukushima nuclear power plant.
Fukushima was damaged on March 11, 2011, when a magnitude 9.0 earthquake occurred off the east coast of Japan.
The strongest earthquake ever recorded in Japan triggered a tsunami that swept through the main island of Honshu, killing more than 18,000 people and wiping entire villages off the map.
