Agencies

TOKYO, Nov 15: A small tsunami measuring 40 centimetres hit Japan's northeastern coast on Wednesday after a massive earthquake, a meteorologist said.            

The seismic wave struck Nemuro, a city on the northern island of Hokkaido near the Russian-administered Kuril islands, said an official at the local branch of the Japan Meteorological Agency.    

The wave was far smaller than the potential two-meter tsunamis feared in the warning by the meteorological agency. No damage was immediately reported.          

Earlier, a massive earthquake struck near the Russian-ruled Kuril islands in the northern Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, triggering a tsunami warning for Japan's coast.   

The earthquake registered 8.1 on the Richter scale at 8:15 pm (1115 GMT) on the Pacific coast, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.   

It said waves of up to two meters were on course to hit Japan's northern coast and the Kuril islands as early as 9:10 pm (1210 GMT).   

The agency urged residents to head to higher ground, a warning passed on by local authorities.   

The quake struck some 600 kilometres northeast of Japan's main northern island of Hokkaido on the Kuril island chain, too far away to be felt in Japan's major population centers.   

Japan is home to 20 per cent of the world's major earthquakes, frequently jolting its cities.