Strong earthquake hits Osaka in western Japan leaving people dead

STEFAN FAIRWEATHER/SUPPLIED

Stefan Fairweather said he lurched all over the place "like a drunken sailor" as noodles fell around him in Osaka.

Japanese disaster authorities say at least three people have been found dead and 41 others have been injured by an earthquake in western Japan.

A strong magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck the city of Osaka and the surrounding area on Monday morning. The quake knocked over walls, scattered goods on the floor of shops and set off scattered fires around Osaka.

Japanese media reported one of the quake's victims is a 9-year-old girl found at a school in Takatsuki City.  National broadcaster NHK reported a wall near a school swimming pool fell on the girl.

AP

Police inspect the site - covered by blue sheet - where a 9-year-old girl was killed by fallen wall near a school in Takatsuki, Osaka.

Police in Osaka say a man in his 80s in Ibaraki City was confirmed dead after a bookcase fell on him at his house. An 80-year-old man in Osaka City also died after a wall fell on him.

Disaster Management Minister Hachiro Okonogi says there are reports of people being buried under collapsed buildings.

Japanese authorities don't confirm death until after an examination at a hospital.

AP

A strong earthquake knocked over walls and set off scattered fires around the city of Osaka in western Japan on Monday morning.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said a quake with preliminary magnitude of 5.9 struck Monday around 8am. The Japan Meteorological Agency has updated the magnitude of the quake to a stronger 6.1. The inland earthquake poses no tsunami risk.

The area north of Osaka was the hardest hit, the agency said.

Japanese government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said there were no reports of major damage as of 8.30am (local time).

Train and subway service including the bullet train that links Osaka to Tokyo was stopped have been suspended to check for damage to equipment.

The quake struck in one of Japan's main manufacturing heartlands, home to companies including Panasonic, Nintendo and Keyence Corp. Bloomberg reported plants across the area were halted as firms assessed the damage. Car makers Honda, Mitsubishi, Toyota and Daihatsu all stopped production at plants in the region.

More than 170,000 homes were without power as of 9.50am, regional utility Kansai Electric Power said, although there were no reports of abnormalities at its nuclear plants in the region.

A major earthquake has long been feared in the area, which is located near several major faults. In 1995, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake killed more than 6000 people when it struck in neighbouring Kobe.

Senior government officials are gathering for an emergency meeting at the Prime Minister's office, broadcaster NHK reported.

Japanese Self-Defense Force fighter jets and helicopters are heading to the area to gather information.