A 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck central Japan on Friday, according to the national weather agency, with no immediate casualties reported.
The earthquake struck at 2:42 p.m. (5:42 GMT) at a depth of 10 kilometers, according to the same source, which did not issue a tsunami warning.
The quake in Suzu City, Ishikawa, measured level 6 on the Japanese Shindo scale, which goes up to 7, meaning it could trigger large landslides.
The American Geophysical Institute US Geological Survey (USGC) estimated its magnitude at 6.2 and located it slightly offshore, while the Japanese agency placed the epicenter on land.
No deaths or damage were initially reported.
Japan Railway said bullet train service between Nagano and Kanazawa, a popular tourist spot, has been suspended.
This Friday is a public holiday in Japan that celebrates “Golden Week” which includes four non-working days. The population usually uses this time to travel or to return to their families.
The city of Suzu, where this earthquake occurred, is located on the Noto Peninsula. In 2007, a 6.9 magnitude earthquake struck a fishing village there, injuring hundreds and damaging more than 200 buildings.
Government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters in Tokyo that no abnormalities had been detected at the Shiga and Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plants, located in the affected area.
Frequent shaking
Earthquakes are common in Japan, which lies on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an area of high seismic activity spanning Southeast Asia and the Pacific Basin.
The archipelago has strict building standards to allow its buildings to withstand severe shaking. Emergency drills to prepare for a major earthquake are organized regularly.
The country is still haunted by the memory of the March 11, 2011 magnitude 9.0 earthquake off Japan’s northeast coast.
The terrible quake triggered a tsunami that was the main cause of the high death toll with nearly 18,500 dead or missing.
The ensuing nuclear accident at the flooded Fukushima Daiichi plant, which melted the cores of three out of six reactors, forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate and rendered entire communities uninhabitable for several years.
In March last year, a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck northeastern Japan, killing three people.