TOKYO – A strong quake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.6 jolted the central Japanese prefecture of Yamanashi and nearby areas on Friday, the weather agency said, with no tsunami warning issued and no abnormality detected in volcanic activity at Mt. Fuji.
The 10:29 p.m. quake, at a depth of around 20 kilometers, measured lower 6 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi.
An intensity of lower 6 means it is difficult to remain standing and unsecured objects like furniture may topple over and windows may be damaged, according to the agency. Parts of the Tokyo metropolitan area were also shaken by the quake that measured 4 in intensity.
No abnormalities were found at nuclear power facilities, including Chubu Electric Power Co.’s Hamaoka plant, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told a press conference.
Tokaido Shinkansen bullet train services were temporarily suspended after the quake, according to JR Central.
Tohoku, Joetsu and Hokuriku Shinkansen services were automatically halted but resumed operations about 15 minutes later, JR East said.
“It was like an upward-thrusting earthquake,” said an official with the town office in Fujikawaguchiko.
A part-time female employee, 64, at a local convenience store evacuated outside, recalling the 2011 major earthquake that wreaked havoc in northeastern Japan.
“Vertical shaking lasted for more than 10 seconds. Snacks fell (from the shelves) in the store,” she said.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi instructed officials to gather information and provide necessary information to the public promptly.
The quake struck as the region was preparing for next month’s opening of this year’s climbing season on the 3,776-meter mountain.
Experts say the quake-hit area is near the convergence of multiple tectonic plates, including the Philippine Sea Plate.
“Magnitude 6-class earthquakes occur once every 10 years or so in the quake-hit area,” said Takuya Nishimura, a professor at the Disaster Prevention Institute of Kyoto University.
“It is unlikely to cause Mt. Fuji to erupt considering the mechanism” of the quake that occurred near the boundary between tectonic plates.
Japan is prone to natural disasters, with another powerful quake hitting northeastern Japan on Thursday.