An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.9 hit wide areas of the Tohoku region Monday morning, the Meteorological Agency said. It struck at around 7:47 a.m., registering 4 on the Japanese intensity scale to 7 in northern Miyagi Prefecture, and 3 in several parts in Iwate, Akita, Miyagi, Yamagata and Fukushima prefectures, it said.
No tsunami warnings were issued and there were no immediate reports of damage or serious injuries, local police and firefighters said.
A quake of 4 on the Japanese scale is strong enough to awaken most sleeping people.