Magnitude 5.5 earthquake strikes off Japan’s Hokkaido coast

An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.5 struck the Pacific Ocean off the eastern coast of Japan’s Hokkaido island on Tuesday, according to the Altai-Sayan branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Unified Geophysical Service, as reported by Interfax.

The earthquake occurred at 6:07 p.m. local time, with its epicentre located about 233 km (145 miles) east of the city of Kushiro, according to the service. The intensity of the shaking at the epicentre was classified as “very strong.”

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) measured the earthquake at magnitude 5.0 and estimated the depth of its focus at 96.9 km (60.2 miles).

By Tamilla Hasanova