Earthquakes Strike 20 Miles from Fukushima

The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. (Photo: IAEA/ cc/ Flickr)

Earthquakes Strike 20 Miles from Fukushima

Two earthquakes rattled the imperiled coastline overnight

Two sizable earthquakes struck off the coast of Japan near the precarious Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant early Monday.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, one quake measuring magnitude 5.8 and another measuring 5.6 struck off the coast of Honsu--Japan's largest and most populated island--overnight.

The agency says there is no immediate risk of a tsunami. However, the larger of the two quakes hit just 21 nautical miles from the Fukushima plant, where the containment of radioactive water and waste has been fraught with problems since an earthquake struck off the coast of the plant in 2011.

Situated at the crux of several tectonic plates, Japan experiences a number of significant quakes every year.

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