Strong earthquake rocks Japan

This aerial view shows collapsed houses on Genkai island near Fukuoka yesterday after a strong earthquake hit southern Japan. The strong earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale rocked the southern Japanese island of Kyushu, killing at least one person and injuring some 400 others. PHOTO: AFP

The quake, which occurred at 10:53 am (0153 GMT), also collapsed houses and roads, caused landslides and disrupted land and air traffic.

The government's Meteorolog-ical Agency immediately issued tsunami warnings but lifted them one hour later after detecting no significant rise in the tide.

The Kyodo news agency reported about 400 people received treatment at hospitals for injuries. Police confirmed 64 injuries, six of them serious, caused by splinters from shattered window panes and falling objects.

Glass splinters cascaded down from an office building in a downtown business district in Fukuoka, sending passersby rushing away in panic, according to television footage on the Japan Broadcasting Corp.

A 75 year-old woman died after she was crushed by a falling block wall in Fukuoka, a city official said.