The epicenter, with a depth of 20 km, was monitored at 38.0 degrees north latitude and 141.8 degrees east longitude, the center said in a statement.
Over 20 strong and moderate quakes have struck the region within 10 hours till early Sunday morning.
Amid a series of strong and moderate aftershocks struck off the east coast of Honshu since Friday, the 6th reactor in Fukushima has also lost its cooling system, Kyodo News Agency reported on Sunday.
An explosion occurred at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant earlier on Saturday triggered public panic, but the Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said late Saturday that owner and operator of the nuclear facility, Tokyo Electric Power Co., has confirmed that the steel container housing the reactor is intact.
According to Kyodo reports on Sunday, 15 people near Fukushima nuke plants exposed to radioactivity. However, an official of Japan`s nuclear safety agency earlier said that the number of individuals exposed to radiation from the incident could reach 70 to 160. (*)
Editor: Aditia Maruli Radja
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