A powerful earthquake struck Japan on Friday afternoon, shaking buildings in capital Tokyo for several minutes and triggering a tsunami along the coastline.
The immediate impact of the tsunami was not known. Some estimates put the height of the waves at 32 feet.
According to reports, the earthquake measuring 8.8 on the Richter Scale struck northern Japan around 2.46 pm (local time) at a depth of 10 km, about 125 km off the eastern coast.
In Tokyo, large buildings shook violently and workers poured into the streets for safety. Witnesses said the quake caused a fire in a huge building in Odaiba district of Tokyo.
A footage on national broadcaster NHK from its Sendai office showed employees stumbling around and books and papers crashing from desks.
Police and coast guard officials said they were assessing possible damage from the earthquake.