Tokyo: An earthquake measuring 8.3 on the Richter scale struck northern Japan and the country's meteorological agency issued a tsunami warning today (Jan 13, 2007). 

The warning was issued for the eastern part of Japan's northernmost island of Hokkaido and a lesser warning for a wide area of northeastern and eastern Honshu, NHK public television said. 

The agency said that waves as high as one metre could hit the northeastern coast of Hokkaido at around 2 p.m. (0500 GMT).

Reports said that Japan's Pacific coast issued evacuation orders to flee to higher ground along the coastal area in the region.