Strong magnitude-6 earthquake strikes near Kobe but no major damage reported

TOKYO – Japan's Meteorological Agency says a magnitude-6 quake has struck near the southwestern city of Kobe, but public broadcaster NHK reports there is no major damage and no tsunami alert has been issued.

The quake hit at 5:33 a.m. Saturday and was centered on Awaji Island, just south of Kobe, the agency and NHK said. It struck at a depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles).

The quake was centered near the same area where a magnitude-7.2 quake killed more than 6,400 people in 1995.