An earthquake of magnitude 5.3 struck areas near Tokyo on Friday, reports said quoting national weather agency which added that it appears not to be associated with the chance of massive quake occurring from the Nankai Trough in the Pacific.
The earthquake struck at 7.57 pm, measured at a lower 5 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in western Kanagawa Prefecture, according to the agency. The depth of the quake was recorded 10 kms underground.
The advisory was published after a magnitude 7.1 struck southwestern Japan, with its focus located in waters off Miyazaki Prefecture, on the western edge of the Nankai Trough, reports said. The temblor came after the Japan Meteorological Agency issued on Thursday its first-ever advisory on higher-than-usual risks of a Nankai Trough megaquake, they added.
Powerful earthquake on Thursday
A powerful earthquake measuring 7.1 on the Richter Scale struck off Japan’s southern coast on Thursday, triggering a tsunami advisory near the southern coast of Kyushu. The 7.1 magnitude earthquake occurred at 4:42 pm local time near Miyazaki, Japan, reported by the United States Geological Survey.
Earlier, the Japan Meteorological Agency said the tremor was registered at a preliminary magnitude of 6.9 and was centred off the eastern coast of Japan’s southern main island of Kyushu at a depth of about 30 km (18.6 miles). It issued a tsunami advisory, predicting waves of up to 1 metre (3.3 feet) along the southern coast of Kyushu and the nearby island of Shikoku.
The advisory was issued for the coastal areas of Miyazaki, Kochi, Oita, Kagoshima and Ehime prefectures, according to NHK World. The agency said tsunami waves of up 50 centimetres (1.6 feet) were detected along parts of Kyushu’s southern coast and the nearby island of Shikoku about a half hour after the quake struck.
Seismologists were holding an emergency meeting to analyze whether the quake had affected the nearby Nankai Trough, the source of past devastating earthquakes. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said officials were assessing possible injuries or serious damage, though none were immediately reported. He urged residents of the affected region to stay away from the coastline.
