6.2 Quake Jars Japan; 16 Hurt : Thousands of Bus, Subway Commuters Stranded

The strongest earthquake to rock Tokyo in 56 years sent tremors throughout central and northern Japan today, swaying skyscrapers and stranding thousands of commuters in subways and trains. At least 16 people were reported slightly injured.

The quake, measuring 6.2 on the open-ended Richter scale, struck Japan at 9:26 p.m. and lasted between 20 and 30 seconds, the Central Meteorological Agency said. About 10 aftershocks were measured but none were felt, an agency spokesman said.

The agency said there was no danger of a tsunami, or tidal wave, from the temblor, the strongest earthquake to hit Tokyo since July 27, 1929.

Fire Department officials said at least 14 people suffered minor injuries in Tokyo, including a 79-year-old woman who fell out of her bed and broke her wrist and a 7-year-old girl who was slightly hurt when a camera fell on her.

There were no reports of damage.

The epicenter of the quake was located about 50 miles underground, on the border of Chiba and Ibaragi prefectures surrounding Tokyo, the agency said.

The earthquake caused buildings and electricity poles to sway, some household articles to fall and dishes and glassware to rattle.

NHK television said the Tokyo Gas Co. sent out crews to check primary gas mains in the capital to make sure there were no leaks.

Tokyo residents, already used to frequent tremors, were alarmed by the quake because of the constant media coverage of Mexico City’s devastating earthquakes last month that left thousands of people dead.

A 30-year-old woman living in the capital said she was in the bathtub at the time of the quake.

“Shampoo bottles and things fell on my head and I was scared,” she said.

The earthquake disrupted road traffic and halted trains and subways around Tokyo.

A “bullet” train between Tokyo and Atami, about 50 miles southwest of the capital, was stopped briefly. Several other railway lines were also ordered temporarily halted and traffic on several major highways came to a standstill. Air traffic was not affected.

“The room swayed a lot--the immediate thought that crossed my mind was, ‘Is this another Mexico?’ ” said Tokyo resident Jaime Tengan.

An American editor in the famed Imperial Hotel, which survived the 1929 quake, said guests were advised to stay in their room.

The temblor struck only hours after Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone appeared on a street corner in downtown Tokyo to raise funds for Mexican relief.