Magnitude 7.6 earthquake triggers tsunami off Japan’s northern coast

A tsunami has been triggered by the quake (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

A powerful 7.6 magnitude earthquake has struck off northern Japan triggering a tsunami of up to 70 centimetres in Pacific coast communities and warnings of potentially higher surges, the Japanese Meteorological Agency said.

The quake struck at about 11.15pm local time in the Pacific Ocean about 50 miles off the coast of Aomori, the northernmost prefecture of Japan’s main Honshu island, the agency said.