Moderate quake rattles Japan

WASHINGTON, D.C. - A moderate earthquake hit northeast Japan on Monday, but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

The Japanese Meteorological Agency said the quake had a magnitude of 5.9 and was centered 25 miles deep under the sea off the coast of Fukushima, a prefecture around 149 miles northeast of the capital, Tokyo.

Television pictures showed shaking streetlights but Japanese media said no injuries had been reported in the area and the agency said there was no tsunami risk.

On a Japanese scale that measures the effect, the agency said the earthquake measured four out of seven -- a level of shaking that may frighten people and cause hanging objects to swing but is unlikely to result in major damage.

The U.S. Geological Survey put the quake at magnitude 6.2.

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