5.8-magnitude earthquake hits off Japan’s Aomori

Tokyo: An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.8 struck off Aomori Prefecture in northern Japan on Saturday, the country’s weather agency said.

The temblor occurred at 11:48 a.m. local time off Aomori’s Pacific coast at a depth of 80 km, measuring 4 on Japan’s seismic scale of 7, said the Japan Meteorological Agency.

The quake’s epicentre was located at a latitude of 41.3 degrees north and a longitude of 142.0 degrees east, reports Xinhua news agency.

No tsunami advisory was issued.

This comes close on the heels of another powerful earthquake that struck Kumamoto Prefecture at around 4:27 p.m. local time Tuesday, registering an intensity of 7, the highest on the Japanese seismic scale, in the hardest-hit areas, causing widespread damage across the prefecture.

Earlier on Friday, the prefectural government announced that the death toll from a powerful earthquake has risen to 35.

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At a disaster response headquarters meeting held Friday morning, Kumamoto Prefecture Government officials announced that 35 people had died, including those whose deaths are still being investigated to determine whether they were caused by the strong tremor.

Meanwhile, travelling from Yatsushiro to Uki, another city severely affected by the disaster, Xinhua reporters observed buckled and cracked roads, malfunctioning traffic signals and long queues at gas stations. Many people waiting for fuel said they intended to spend the night in their vehicles.

In the Ogawa district in Uki City, a civic activity centre had been converted into an evacuation shelter after the earthquake, where nearly 500 evacuees, many of them elderly people and children, were staying.

Families sat on the floor surrounded by backpacks, clothing and bottled water. Some leaned against walls to rest, while others laid out sleeping mats in preparation for the night. More than a dozen portable toilets had been installed outside.