Japan: 5.3 magnitude earthquake north of Tokyo

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.3 hit the east of Japan on Thursday morning, according to the country's meteorological agency. 

No tsunami warning was issued in the aftermath. 

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) similarly recorded a mid-sized quake, putting the magnitude at 5.2 at first, roughly 4 kilometers east of Kasukabe — a city of roughly 230,000 people.  

Japan's meteorological agency reported the quake's depth at 50 kilometers (roughly 30 miles), and said its epicenter was in the southwest of Ibaraki prefecture. 

Quakes common in region

Japan has a separate metric for measuring earthquakes known as theShindo seismic scale, that expresses the degree of shaking on the surface in the event of an earthquake.

Areas closest to the epicenter logged a -5 on that 0-7 scale, a level that predicts some disruption and damage but also most likely no serious danger.

No damage or injuries were reported immediately. However, bullet trains suspended operation between Tokyo and Koriyama in northeastern Japan's Fukushima region as a result of a power outage, Japan's public broadcaster NHK reported.

Hiroyuki Sanada, an official at the Nuclear Regulation Authority, said "no abnormality" had been reported at the Tokai Daini nuclear plant in Ibaraki. The plant was halted for safety checks after the earthquake.

Japan experiences around 1,500 jolts every year, accounting for about 18% of the world's earthquakes. 

mk/msh (AFP, Reuters)