M 5.6 quake hits Tokyo area, no injuries

TOKYO, May 25 (KUNA) -- A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.6 on the Richter Scale struck eastern Japan on Tuesday, including Tokyo, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. But there were no immediate reports of casualties and damage. No tsunami warning was issued for the 2:28 p.m. (0528 GMT) quake.
Operators of nuclear power plants in the affected areas said there were no signs of "abnormalities" at the facilities from the quake. Shinkansen bullet train service in the region was briefly suspended, due to power outages, but resumed afterwards. The focus of the tremor was 50 km underground in northern part of Saitama Prefecture, about 50 km northwest of Tokyo, according to the agency.
The quake registered lower 5 on the Japanese seismic scale of 7 in Tsuchiura City. The agency defines an intensity of lower 5 as strong enough to make hanging objects swing violently and most unstable ornaments fall.
In Tokyo, the quake registered 4 on the Japanese seismic scale. The Japanese scale measures how much places were shaken on the surface while the Richter scale measures the energy of the quake itself. The country was severely damaged by the magnitude 9.0-quake and ensuing tsunami in March 2011 that left nearly 19,000 people dead or missing and damaged the Fukushima nuclear complex. (end) mk.rk