Earthquake of magnitude 6.3 strikes Japan's Miyazaki; no tsunami threat

Tokyo, May 10: An earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 6.3 hit off Kyushu on Friday. However, no major injuries were reported.

The earthquake struck at 8:48 am (2348 GMT Thursday) in Pacific waters nearly 40 kilometres (25 miles) east-southeast of Miyazaki city at a depth of 24 km.

It measured a lower 5 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in the city of Miyazaki and Miyakonojo, Miyazaki Prefecture, and registered 4 in many locations in Miyazaki, Kumamoto, Oita and Kagoshima prefectures, the agency said.

Following the quake, Kyushu Electric Power Co. said no abnormalities were detected at its Sendai nuclear power plant in Kagoshima Prefecture, where two reactors are in operation.

Runways at airports in Miyazaki, Kumamoto and Kagoshima prefectures were inspected and no problems were reported, airlines said.

Japan sits at the junction of four tectonic plates and experiences a number of relatively violent quakes every year.