Moderately strong quake hits North Japan ( 2003-10-31 09:34) (Agencies) A moderately strong earthquake hit northern Japan
on Friday, causing buildings to shake in Tokyo, but there were no immediate
reports of damage.
National broadcaster NHK said the quake, which struck at around 8:06 p.m. EST
Thursday, measured 6.8 on the open-ended Richter scale.
It said the focus of the earthquake was 19 miles below the surface off the
coast of Fukushima prefecture in northeastern Japan.
NHK said the earthquake measured four on Japan's seismic intensity scale of
seven in some areas of Miyagi prefecture, which is just north of Fukushima.
There was no risk of damage from tsunamis, NHK said.
An earthquake with a Japanese scale of four is considered strong enough to
make hanging objects swing considerably and cause dishes in cupboards to rattle.
Japan sits atop the junction of at least three tectonic plates, immense slabs
of the earth's crust whose gradual movements are thought to cause earthquakes,
making it one of the world's most earthquake-prone regions.
A powerful earthquake registering 8.0 on the open-ended Richter scale rocked
Japan's northern island of Hokkaido late last month, injuring nearly 600 people
and causing a fire to break out at an oil refinery.
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