Strong quake jolts Japan; alert in Korea, Russia

SCORES OF HOUSES DESTROYED; MAJOR TSUNAMI WARNING ISSUED, BUT WAS LATER REDUCED

- TIM KELLY, SATOSHI SUGIYAMA SAKURA MURAKAMI

A POWERFUL EARTHQUAKE struck central Japan on Monday, destroying scores of buildings, knocking out power to tens of thousands of homes and prompting residents to evacuate some coastal areas.

The quake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6 triggered waves of about 1 metre along Japan's west coast and neighbouring South Korea, with authorities saying larger waves could follow.

The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued tsunami warnings for the prefectures of Ishikawa, Niigata and Toyama. A major tsunami warning - the first since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that struck northeastern Japan was initially issued for Ishikawa but later downgraded.