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Waves but no damage

Tokyo: Japan issued a tsunami alert on Wednesday and told Pacific coast residents to flee to higher ground after a powerful earthquake hit off sparsely populated islands between northern Japan and the Russian Far East. A tsunami about 2 metres tall or higher had been expected to hit the Pacific coast of Japan's northernmost island of Hokkaido, the agency said. The first wave recorded at Nemuro port on Hokkaido hit at 1759 IST but was estimated at only 40 centimetres. A second wave of half that height was recorded about 15 minutes later. At least three more small waves followed. Live footage from Japan after the first waves hit showed calm seas and lighted windows. Residents said they barely felt the quake and there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries. No damage or casualties were reported in Russia as a result of the quake, said an official in the Sakhalin region, which includes the Kuril Islands. The epicentre of the quake was in the Pacific Ocean 130 km east of Simushir, an uninhabited island in the Kurils. A tsunami alert was issued for the Kurils and Sakhalin, a large island between the chain and Russia's eastern coast, but was later lifted, she said. — AP

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