Strong Quakes Jolt Nagano Pref. in Central Japan

Tokyo, April 18 (Jiji Press)–Two powerful earthquakes struck northern areas of Nagano Prefecture in central Japan on Saturday, with the first temblor measuring up to upper 5, the fourth-highest level on the Japanese seismic intensity scale. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the first quake occurred at around 1:20 p.m., with upper 5 observed in the Nagano city of Omachi and lower 5, the fifth highest, in the prefecture’s namesake capital city. The second shock, in which the two cities logged lower 5, struck at around 2:54 p.m. Both earthquakes are estimated to have occurred at a depth of roughly 10 kilometers in northern Nagano Prefecture, the agency said. The first temblor had an estimated magnitude of 5.0, and the second quake 5.1. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]