Arab News Japan

TOKYO: A strong earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter Scale struck in the sea near the southern Japanese islands of Okinawa on Monday.

The quake occurred in the middle of the afternoon and the epicenter near Yonaguni Island was at a relatively shallow 20 km.

On the 10-point Japanese intensity scale, it registered as a 3.

There was no danger of a major tsunami but the Japan Meteorological Agency said there may be some minor sea level fluctuations in coastal areas.

The Meteorological Agency initially issued an earthquake warning that predicted “an 8.0 magnitude earthquake in Taiwan,” but the actual quake was smaller than expected and centered in the ocean near Taiwan and Okinawa.