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Quake hits southwestern Japan; 2 injured
The quake occurred at 5:01 am, with its epicentre located 140 kilometres below the ground near the town of Oita.
An earthquake measuring 6.1 in magnitude shook large areas of southwestern Japan early on Monday, injuring two people, officials said.
The quake occurred at 5:01 am, with its epicentre located 140 kilometres below the ground near the town of Oita on the island of Kyushu.
There were no fears of tidal waves, the agency said.
A woman in her 60s was sent to hospital after she was hit on the head in her house in the southern city of Hiroshima.
An official with the Hiroshima Fire Department said she is in stable condition.
In the city of Matsuyama on Shikoku island, a junior high school student was injured with a falling object while asleep, an official with the city's fire department said.
Local train services were temporarily suspended as officials inspected for damage.
Some hotel elevators came to a halt in Hiroshima, but no one appeared to be trapped, Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK) reported.
Japan lies at the junction of four tectonic plates and has about 20 per cent of the world's powerful earthquakes, frequently jolting Tokyo and other major cities.
