Strong quake hits southern Japanese islands

Strong quake hits southern Japanese islands
AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE

TOKYO, JULY 9: A strong earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Richter Scale hit small Japanese islands south of Tokyo early Sunday, triggering landslides, officials said.

The epicenter of the quake, which struck at 3:57 am (1857 GMT), was located east of Kozushima island in the Pacific about 170 kilometers (105 miles) south of Tokyo, the meteorological agency said.

At least eight landslides occurred on Kozushima, but there were no immediate reports of casualties, police said. A meteorological agency official said there was no need for a tsunami (tidal wave) warning, but warned strong aftershocks may follow for a few weeks.

A local authority spokesman said: "Five large landslides and three minor ones were reported. Houses were damaged, but we have not received any report of injuries." The quake struck west of Miyakejima, where a volcano erupted on Saturday following a series of minor tremors.

Authorities have said there was no need for islanders to evacuate. Miyakejima's 813-meter (2,683-foot) Mount Oyama volcano continued spewing smoke from its top early Sunday, Japan Broadcasting Corp (NHK) said.

The eruption came just after authorities lifted an evacuation order on Miyakejima's residents on June 29. But the Miyakejima Government said it had no plan to reactivate the evacuation order. The volcano erupts roughly every 20 years. When it last blew in 1983 about 500 homes were buried by lava on the western side of the island, but there were no injuries.

Japan's 732-meter (2,415-foot) Mount Usu volcano on the northern island of Hokkaido resumed activity on March 31 after 22 years, but has calmed down after spewing ash and rocks in a series of steam eruptions.