A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck southern Japan late Wednesday, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
The quake's epicentre was reported to be the Bungo Channel, a strait between the Japanese islands of Kyushu and Shikoku, the agency said, adding that no tsunami warning had been issued.
The tremor was felt with an intensity of 6 on Japan’s 1-7 scale in Ehime and Kochi prefectures, as stated by the JMA.
As of now, there have been no reports of major damage, local media outlets have reported.
Japan, known for being one of the world’s most seismically active regions, experiences frequent earthquakes. Approximately one-fifth of the world’s earthquakes with a magnitude of 6 or higher occur in Japan.
On March 11, 2011, the northeast coast was struck by a magnitude 9 earthquake, the strongest quake in Japan on record, and a massive tsunami.
The geographical location of Japan makes it an earthquake-prone zone with hundreds of quakes hitting it every year and not all lead to casualties.
According to Reuters, Japan accounts for about 20 per cent of the world's earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater, and each year experiences up to 2,000 quakes that can be felt by people.
(With Inputs from Reuters)
