[babble-on]

Being reported now as 7.8, no damage reports seen yet. Hokkaido is not very heavily populated, and quake pretty far out at sea, so probably the worst would be the tsunami if there is one.

[DittoJed2]

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Maps/region/Asia.html

[SauronOfMordor]

Reuters finally notices:

Strong Quake Hits Japan North Island of Hokkaido
Thu September 25, 2003 04:37 PM ET
TOKYO (Reuters) - A strong earthquake struck the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido on Friday and Japanese authorities issued a tsunami tidal wave warning on television.

The quake measured up to six on the Japanese scale of one to seven. Under the Japanese seismic classification, an intensity-6 earthquake is strong enough to damage houses, trigger landslides and crack up roads.

NHK television showed video of a fire at an oil refinery after the quake.

The meteorological agency issued a tsunami warning for the coastal areas in eastern and central Hokkaido and a tsunami alert for the coastal areas in western Hokkaido as well as the northern Japanese prefectures of Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima.

Hokkaido, about the size of Austria, is the second largest of Japan's four main islands and is home to a nuclear reactor and active volcanoes.

The island, which has a population of more than five million, was hit by the tail end of a typhoon last month. The capital, Sapporo, hosted the Winter Olympics in 1972.

[tallhappy]

Hokkaido is not very heavily populated, and quake pretty far out at sea,

According to the longitude and lattitude it seems very close to the island.