Magnitude 6.5 quake hits off coast of Japan

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Magnitude 6.5 quake hits off coast of Japan

The Associated Press Published Wednesday, August 12, 2009 8:31PM EDT

Text:

TOKYO - A magnitude-6.5 earthquake hit off Japan's eastern coast early Thursday, the country's Meteorological Agency said.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. The agency said there was no danger of damage from a tsunami.

The quake hit at 7:49 a.m. (1049 GMT) off the coast of Hachijo, a small island about 170 miles (275 kilometres) south of Tokyo, at a depth of 25 miles (40 kilometres).

Japan is one of the world's most earthquake-prone countries, and experts believe Tokyo has a 90 per cent chance of being hit by a major quake over the next 50 years.

In 1995, a magnitude-7.2 quake in the western port city of Kobe killed 6,400 people.

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A Japanese TV crew cover the cracks following a 6.5-magnitude earthquake at a Makinohara port, Shizuoka Prefecture (State), Japan, Wedndsday, Aug. 12, 2009. (AP / Itsuo Inouye)
A Japanese TV crew cover the cracks following a 6.5-magnitude earthquake at a Makinohara port, Shizuoka Prefecture (State), Japan, Wedndsday, Aug. 12, 2009. (AP / Itsuo Inouye)