Tokyo: According to the National Center for Seismology, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake tremor was felt on the Richter scale near Tokyo, Japan on Saturday afternoon. According to the agency, the epicenter of the earthquake was 362 kilometers north-northeast (NNE) from Tokyo, Japan. The quake struck at a depth of 77 km from the surface at 2:39 PM Indian time.
The warning prompted some residents in Miyagi to rush to higher ground ahead of the possible arrival of tsunami, NHK footage showed.
There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage to property.
The quake also shook buildings in Tokyo.
The temblor occurred at 6.09 p.m. (local time), with its epicentre located at a latitude of 38.4 degrees north and a longitude of 141.7 degrees east, and at the depth of 60 km, the agency said.
On March 11, Japan marked the 10th anniversary of a magnitude-9.0 quake and resulting tsunami that struck the same region in 2011, leaving about 18,400 dead or missing.
The twin natural disasters caused a triple meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, which spewed radioactive substances into the environment.
The nuclear emergency prompted hundreds of thousands of residents to flee their homes.
A month ago, a magnitude-7.3 quake also rocked the north-east, killing one person and injuring about 190 others.
Japan sits at the convergence of four tectonic plates, making it especially prone to seismic activity.
