No tsunami danger as 6.6 earthquake rocks western JapanOctober 21, 2016 - 13:33 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.6 shook western Japan on Friday, October 21 the Japan Meteorological Agency said, adding that a tsunami warning was not issued, Reuters reports. There were no immediate reports of injuries or major damage and no irregularities at nuclear plants, but media said roughly 40,000 households were without power. The epicentre of the earthquake was in Tottori prefecture at a depth of 10 km, the agency said. The quake occurred at 2:07 p.m. and was followed by a weaker aftershock about 30 minutes later. Earthquakes are common in Japan, one of the world's most seismically active area. Japan accounts for about 20 percent of the world's earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater. 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. Those events triggered the world's worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl a quarter of a century earlier. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Cyprus parliament honors Armenian genocide victims Acting House President Zacharias Koulias noted that April 24 marks the “black anniversary” of the Armenian genocide. Armenia PM, France envoy discuss regional matters Issues related to the consistent development of Armenia-France cooperation were discussed. Azerbaijan razes historic Armenian church to ground Azerbaijan has demolished the historic Armenian Church of St. John the Baptist (known as Kanach Zham). Russia to begin assessing migrant workers' speaking skills Rosobrnadzor is planning to change the Russian language exam for migrant workers and include an assessment of speaking skills |