Summary A 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck off Japan's Hokkaido island late on Saturday.
TOKYO, Feb 2, 2013 (AFP) - A 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck off Japan s Hokkaido island late on Saturday, the US Geological Survey reported, but there was no warning of a tsunami.
A destructive tsunami was not generated, said a release from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, while Kyodo news agency said there was no threat of tsunami, citing the Japan Meteorological Agency.
The quake hit at a depth of 103 kilometres (64 miles) at 23:17 pm (1417 GMT), about 109 kilometres west of Kushiro, Hokkaido, the USGS said.
There are no immediate reports of major damage from the quake, according to Kyodo.
A powerful 7.3-magnitude undersea quake off the northeast coast in December triggered a one-metre-high tsunami but no reports of fatalities.
In March 2011 a devastating earthquake and tsunami in the same area left some 19,000 people dead or missing and crippled the Fukushima nuclear power plant in the world s worst atomic disaster in 25 years.
