M4.9 Quake Hits Eastern Japan Including Tokyo, No Tsunami Threat

TOKYO, Sept 29 (NNN-Kyodo) -- An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.9 struck eastern Japan around 4.45 am Tuesday, registering 4 on Japan's seismic intensity scale of 7 in parts of Ibaraki and Saitama prefectures near Tokyo, Kyodo News reported, citing the weather agency.

There was no threat of a tsunami, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Japan Atomic Power Co. said no abnormalities were detected at the Tokai No. 2 nuclear power plant in Ibaraki Prefecture, northeast of Tokyo.

The quake also registered between 1 and 3 on the intensity scale in Tokyo and the prefectures of Miyagi, Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa, Niigata, Yamanashi, Nagano and Shizuoka, the agency said.

The quake originated in the southern part of Ibaraki Prefecture at a depth of around 50 kilometres, it added.

--NNN-KYODO