Powerful Earthquake Spawns Tsunami And Evacuations In Japan

A magnitude-7.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Japan's Fukushima prefecture Tuesday morning, prompting evacuations in coastal areas.

A magnitude-7.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Japan early Tuesday, spawning tsunami waves up to 4 feet high and prompting evacuations along the coast.

Video from Japan's NHK TV network showed strong shaking in Fukushima prefecture at the time of the quake.

video-cdn.buzzfeed.com / Via www3.nhk.or.jp

A tsunami warning was issued for the Fukushima and Miyagi prefecture coastline, and was later downgraded to an advisory. All advisories were lifted by 12:50 p.m. local time.

Authorities called for the immediate evacuation of coastal regions in Fukushima and Miyagi, warning of water possibly rising between 1 and 3 meters.

By 6:40 a.m., a 60-centimeter wave was observed at the port in Iwaki. Later in the morning, a wave of 1.4 meters (4.6 feet) was reported in Sendai.

In Tokyo, about three hours away, people reported several minutes of shaking. Information on any damage was not immediately available.

The NHK building still rocking 2 min after quake...

In 2011, a magnitude-9.0 earthquake rocked the Fukushima region — the largest ever recorded to have hit Japan. Around 20,000 people were killed, and walls of water 30 feet high damaged nuclear reactors.

Following Tuesday's quake, TEPCO, the operator of the Fukushima nuclear plant, said a cooling system had stopped in one of its reactors, NHK reported. However, there was no immediate danger and it came back online 90 minutes later, the company said.

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