Strong magnitude 6.9 earthquake hits northern Japan

A strong magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck northern Japan, causing violent shaking in parts of the region, according to preliminary data.

The earthquake was centered 35 kilometers (22 miles) east-northeast of Kuji, a coastal city in Iwate Prefecture, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). It struck at a depth of 51.7 kilometers (32.1 miles).

Japan’s seismic intensity scale put the shaking at Shindo 6+ in the hardest-hit areas, a level at which people can be thrown off balance, unsecured furniture can move or topple, and damage is possible in some buildings.

Footage shared on social media showed heavy shaking for a prolonged time, with objects swinging as the earthquake continued.

The earthquake happened moments after a major earthquake struck Venezuela, but there is no known connection between the two events.

Earthquakes are common around Japan because the country sits along several active plate boundaries, while Venezuela lies along a separate tectonic system on the boundary between the Caribbean and South American plates.

Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world and has experienced some of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded, including the 2011 magnitude 9.1 earthquake off northeastern Japan that triggered a devastating tsunami.