M6.8 quake hits northeastern Japan, many people injured

TOKYO-A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 jolted northeastern Japan, including Iwate and Aomori prefectures, early Thursday, leaving many people injured and causing blackouts in numerous areas.There are no fears of any tsunami from the 12:26 a.m. quake, the Japanese Meteorological Agency said.According to Hachinohe City Hospital in Aomori Prefecture, more than 10 people sustained injuries and were treated there. Several people were also taken to another hospital in Hachinohe. The firefighter headquarters at Misawa in Aomori said a woman in her 70s was taken to hospital after falling with a possible fracture.The quake measured upper 6 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in the northern coastal area of Iwate Prefecture and lower 6 in part of Aomori Prefecture, including Hachinohe, the meteorological agency said.The focus of the quake was around 120 kilometers underground off northern Iwate Prefecture.The government set up a task force at the prime minister's office to deal with the effects of the quake.The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said the government will send a survey team to quake-hit areas early Thursday.Tohoku Electric Power Co. said there was a blackout across wide areas of Iwate Prefecture and in Hachinohe.The company said its Onagawa nuclear power plant in Miyagi Prefecture and Higashidori nuclear power plant are operating normally.Tokyo Electric Power Co. also said its No. 1 and No. 2 nuclear power plants in Fukushima Prefecture are operating normally, while Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd. said there are no problems at its spent nuclear fuel recycling facilities in the village of Rokkasho, Aomori, and no radioactive leaks.
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