A powerful earthquake hits southwestern Japan, prompting temporary tsunami warnings

Japan has issued a tsunami warning after a magnitude 6.6 earthquake hit the country's southwest, the Meteorological Agency said Monday. Public warnings to stay away from coastal areas were later lifted.

The agency initially gave it a rating of 6.9, but later revised it down. The official first told reporters that the number had been lowered to 6.7, but the agency then released a revised statement to 6.6.

There were no immediate reports of damage. Residents in some coastal areas were told to evacuate as a precaution.

One man suffered minor injuries in Kyushu after falling down a flight of stairs, NHK TV reported. Trains stopped running at Miyazaki Station, passengers were left outside.

NHK said the tsunami, estimated to be 3.2 feet high, reached the earth within 30 minutes of the earthquake. The water level at Miyazaki Port was 8 inches high, the reports said.

Tsunami advisories were issued for Miyazaki prefecture, where the quake was centered, on the southwestern island of Kyushu, and nearby Kochi prefecture on Shikoku island, shortly after the quake struck at 9:19 p.m., according to the agency. They were all called before midnight.

The US Geological Survey revised its rating down from 6.9, adding that there is “no tsunami threat from this earthquake” in the United States.

JMA however urged the public to stay away from coastal waters. “Tsunami can hit again and again. Please do not enter the sea or go near coastal areas,” said the organization on social media.

Center director Shigeki Aoki told reporters that people should watch out for landslides and falling objects from houses. Aftershocks are possible, especially in the next two or three days, he said.

The earthquake, centered at a depth of 18.6 kilometers, shook a wide area in Kyushu, the main southwestern island, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

NHK TV footage showed traffic moving and well-lit streets, meaning electricity was still working. No problems have been found in the various nuclear power plant monitoring sites in the area.

Japan is prone to earthquakes due to its location along the “Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin.

Experts from the meteorological agency met late Monday to examine how the recent tremors might be related to the so-called Nankai Trough quake, but decided not to take any extraordinary measures just yet. This term refers to a wide area that is believed to be prone to periodic earthquakes.

The Nankai Trough earthquake in Shikoku in 1946 killed more than 1,300 people.

Last August, a strong earthquake attacked southern Japancausing very little damage but raising the level of concern about a potentially large earthquake from undersea waters off the east coast.

An earthquake on Jan. 1, 2024 in north-central Japan of Noto left more than 240 people dead.

Japan has strict building codes aimed at ensuring that buildings can withstand strong earthquakes, and often holds emergency drills to prepare for major earthquakes.

But the country is haunted by the memory of the 9.0-magnitude earthquake in northeastern Japan in March 2011, which caused rain. The tsunami left around 18,500 people dead or missing.

The 2011 tsunami also sent three reactors into meltdown Fukushima nuclear power plant, causing Japan's worst post-war disaster and worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.

In March 2022, a 7.4 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Fukushima shook large areas of eastern Japan, killing three people.

The capital city of Tokyo was destroyed by a great earthquake one hundred years ago in 1923.

Agence France-Presse contributed to this report.