A 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of the Miyazaki Prefecture Monday evening in Japan, initially setting off a tsunami warning before it was called off, officials said.

A strong, 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of southern Japan on Monday, according to the United States Geological Survey. The temblor happened at 9:19 p.m. Japan time about 7 miles southeast of Miyazaki, Japan, data from the agency shows.

A tsunami advisory has now been lifted after an earlier warning in the wake of a strong earthquake Monday off the coast of Japan’s Miyazaki Prefecture, officials said. The U.S. Geological Survey put the quake’s preliminary magnitude at 6.

A nearly 7.0 earthquake rocked southern Japan on Monday with no reports of damage to the two nuclear power plants in the area.

The quake was centered just offshore of Kyushu, about 7 miles east of the coastal town of Miyazaki, about 520 miles southwest of Tokyo. The U.S. Geological Survey recorded it as a preliminary 6.8-magnitude quake, and data from the agency indicated “strong” shaking in Miyazaki.

A strong earthquake measuring a preliminary magnitude of 6.9 has rattled southwestern Japan. TOKYO (AP) — A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.9 hit southwestern Japan on Monday, triggering public warnings to stay away from coastal areas because of a tsunami advisory, which was later called off.

Japan is frequently hit by earthquakes because of its location along the "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin.

A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.9 hit southwestern Japan, the country’s Meteorological Agency said Monday.