A strong earthquake measuring a preliminary magnitude of 7.4 struck off northern Japan on Monday, prompting authorities to issue a tsunami alert for the region.
According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the quake hit off the Sanriku coast at around 4:53 pm (0753 GMT), at a depth of about 10 kilometers beneath the seabed.
Public broadcaster NHK reported that tsunami waves of up to 3 meters could reach coastal areas shortly.
