TOKYO, May 5, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - A powerful earthquake struck central Japan on

Friday, forcing a brief suspension of bullet train services, but no tsunami
warning was issued, authorities said.

The 6.5 magnitude quake hit the central Ishikawa region at 2:42 pm (0542 GMT)
at a depth of 12 kilometres (seven miles), according to the Japan
Meteorological Agency.

Shinkansen bullet trains were suspended between Nagano and Kanazawa, a
popular tourist destination, but resumed less than two hours later, according
to Japan Railway.

There were no confirmed reports of casualties or damage.

Friday is a public holiday in Japan, part of a run of days off known as
"Golden Week", a time when many people travel for leisure or to visit family.

In the city of Suzu, the quake registered an upper six on the Japanese Shindo
seismic scale, which goes up to a maximum of seven, meaning it could cause
major landslides.

The United States Geological Survey put the magnitude at 6.2 and said it
struck just off the coast, but Japan's Meteorological Agency placed the
epicentre on land.

Earthquakes are common in Japan, which sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", an
arc of intense seismic activity that stretches through Southeast Asia and
across the Pacific basin.

However, Japan has strict construction regulations intended to ensure
buildings can withstand strong quakes and routinely holds emergency drills to
prepare for a major jolt.

A 6.9 magnitude quake struck a fishing village on the Noto peninsula in the
same region in 2007, injuring hundreds and damaging more than 200 buildings.

The Noto peninsula is a rural area on the Sea of Japan coast known for its
natural scenery and seafood. The peninsula's population is around 340,000,
according to 2015 census data.

Japan is haunted by the memory of a massive 9.0-magnitude undersea quake off
its northeast in March 2011, which triggered a tsunami that left around
18,500 people dead or missing.

The 2011 tsunami also sent three reactors into meltdown at Japan's Fukushima
nuclear plant, causing the nation's worst post-war disaster and the most
serious nuclear accident since Chernobyl.

Government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters in Tokyo that no
abnormalities had been detected at the Shiga and Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear
power plants in the area affected by Friday's quake.

"Some sea level changes are expected but there is no tsunami risk," Matsuno
said.

Kenji Satake, a professor at the University of Tokyo's Earthquake Research
Institute, told public broadcaster NHK that aftershocks would likely continue
for a week.

"The Noto region has been quite seismically active in recent years," he said.

In March last year, a 7.4-magnitude quake off the coast of Fukushima shook
large areas of eastern Japan, killing several people.

The capital Tokyo was devastated by a huge earthquake in 1923.