New earthquake strikes near Tokyo, where panic is spreading

The Japanese metropolis of Tokyo, already reeling from reports of higher-than-average radiation levels, was hit by massive tremor. There are also reports of people fleeing Tokyo.

The Japan Meteorological Society said the new quake struck the Shizuoka-ken Tobu region 100 kilometers southwest of Tokyo at approximately 10:30 p.m. local time. The temblor has a magnitude of 6.0.

The Hamaoka Nuclear Plant, located about 100 kilometers from the epicenter, was unaffected by an earthquake, Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said. The plant’s No. 4 and No. 5 units are still operating, it said.

People have been fleeing to this area thinking that they would get away from that active fault line, get away from the earthquakes and get away from the radiation possibilities, a local journalist in Shizuoka prefecture told Canada’s CTV.

So right now we're thinking: 'Where can we go in Japan? A lot of people left the city, including myself. It's in a totally different part of the country than the other ones have been.”

Although local authorities have informed Tokyo residents that the danger from the higher levels of radiation (arising from the damaged nuclear power plant in Fukushima 240 kilometers northeast of Tokyo) was minimal, panic has spread among the inhabitants.

Many shops in Tokyo have run out of survivalist items, including radios, flashlights, candles, fuel cans, sleeping bags, as well as food staples.

People are getting angry when they go to stores now and can't see very basic things like bread or rice and that's in Tokyo, the reporter in Shizuoka told CTV.

The U.S. Geological Survey said there have been at least 405 aftershocks since the main quake last Friday.