Two more quakes hit central Japan

TERRA.WIRE

Two more quakes hit central Japan
TOKYO (AFP) Nov 01, 2004
Two more earthquakes hit the central region of Japan Monday, where thousands of residents were still living in emergency shelters following a major quake more than a week ago, the meteorological agency said.

There were not immediate reports of casualties or damage from the latest quakes, which measured 5.0 and 4.0 on the open-ended Richter scale.

The larger quake occurred at 4:35 am (1935 GMT), with its epicenter in central Niigata, some 200 kilometers (125 miles) north of Tokyo, the agency said. The focus of the quake was 10 kilometres below the surface.

It was followed by a smaller quake at 5:40 am at the same location.

The area was hit by a 6.8 magnitude quake on October 23, resulting in 36 deaths and 2,420 injuries.

More than 70,000 people are still being housed in temporary accommodation or after the initial quake -- the deadliest to hit tremor-prone Japan since 1995 when 6,433 people were killed in the western city of Kobe.

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