TOKYO -- UPDATE -- Tsunami warnings have been called off for pacific ocean reporting locations as of 4PM in Costa Rica Central America. (Previously reported) A strong earthquake jolted northeast Japan late on March 16, prompting the Japan Meteorological Agency to issue a tsunami advisory in northeast Japan.
Products knocked down from shelves by a powerful earthquake are seen at a convenience store in the city of Fukushima on March 16, 2022. (Kyodo)
A residential area in Tokyos Taito Ward is seen in darkness at 11:54 p.m. on March 16, 2022, due to blackouts caused by an earthquake that struck northeast Japan. (Mainichi/Naoki Watanabe)
The magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture at 11:36 p.m., at a depth of about 60 kilometers.
The quake registered an upper 6 on the 7-point Japanese seismic intensity scale in parts of Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures, and an upper 5 in parts of the neighboring prefectures of Iwate and Yamagata. It measured a 4 in parts of eastern Japan including central Tokyo.
According to public broadcaster NHK, some 2.09 million households in the greater Tokyo area have no power due to blackouts caused by the earthquake.