A tsunami advisory was issued for Iwate Prefecture following a magnitude 6.7 earthquake that struck off the coast on Sunday evening, measuring a 4 on Japan’s seismic intensity scale.
The city of Ofunato in Iwate Prefecture issued an evacuation instruction to 6,138 people in 2,825 households in the coastal areas of the city. Other municipalities, including the city of Kamaishi, the town of Otsuchi and the city of Rikuzentakata, instructed people living in areas outside of the seawalls to evacuate.
A 20-centimeter tsunami was observed in Ofunato Port in Iwate at 6:25 p.m., while another 20-cm tsunami was seen in Kuji Port in Iwate at 5:52 p.m.
Meanwhile, a 10-cm tsunami was observed in Miyako Port in Iwate at 6:14 p.m., with another 10-cm tsunami seen in Kamaishi Port in Iwate at 5:37 p.m., according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. At 5:12 p.m., the agency said a weak tsunami had been observed 70 kilometers off the coast of Iwate.
A tsunami advisory covers predicted waves of up to 1 meter.
The quake, which struck at 5:03 p.m., measured shindo 4 in the city of Morioka and the town of Yahaba in Iwate as well as in the town of Wakuya in neighboring Miyagi Prefecture.
East Japan Railway said the Tohoku Shinkansen briefly lost power and that operations were suspended between Sendai and Shin-Aomori stations.
No injuries have been reported from the earthquake as of 6:30 p.m. Sunday, according to the Iwate Prefectural Government.
This is a developing story. Updates to follow.
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