Great
Earthquakes In Diverse Places
Another Strong earthquake rattles eastern Japan
17 August 2011
TOKYO (BNO NEWS) -- A strong earthquake struck off the eastern
coast of Japan on late Wednesday evening, seismologists said, but
there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.
The 5.9-magnitude earthquake at 9.44 p.m. local time (1144 GMT)
was centered about 303 kilometers (188 miles) east of Iwaki, a
city located in the southern part of the Hamadōri coastal region
of Fukushima Prefecture. It struck about 10 kilometers (6 miles)
deep, making it a shallow earthquake, according to the Japan
Meteorological Agency (JMA).
Tremors with an intensity of 2 on the Japanese seismic scale of 0
to 7 were felt in several areas near the coast, but there were no
reports of damage or casualties. The United States Geological
Survey (USGS), which measured the strength of the earthquake at
6.2 on the Richter scale, estimated that some 3 million people in
the region may have felt light shaking.
Because earthquakes with a magnitude below 7 do normally not
generate tsunamis, neither JMA nor the Pacific Tsunami Warning
Center issued a tsunami watch or warning. "This earthquake poses
no tsunami risk," JMA said.
Japan, which is on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, is still
recovering from an enormous 9.0-magnitude earthquake which struck
off the coast of northeastern Japan on March 11, generating a
large tsunami. The earthquake and resulting tsunami left at least
15,698 people killed while 4,666 others remain missing and are
feared dead.