New Aftershock Jolts Japan

An earthquake of 6.1 magnitude on the Richter scale has shaken northeastern Japan once again Thursday, the National Japanese Meteorological Service informs.

There are no reports of casualties, injuries, material damage and tsunami warnings.

The shock was registered at 5:21 pm local time (8:21 am Greenwich time) and was felt the strongest in the Miyagi and Iwate prefectures, which were hit the worst by the March 11 9 point magnitude earthquake and following 10-meter tsunami. The epicenter is 20-km deep, in the Pacific, near the Iwate shoreline.

Meanwhile, the effort to cool reactor 3 resumed Thursday, after workers were forced to leave on Wednesday when thick smoke rose above the NPP. Three of them have been hospitalized for radiation exposure. The reason for the smoke release remains unknown.

Reactor 3 sustained the most damage after the devastating March 11 earthquake. Firefighters continue to spray the reactor with water while technicians are trying to reactivate a water pump.

Experts registered a decrease in the level of radioactive iodine in the capital Tokyo's water supply system after the Wednesday measurements showed a level 131 times above the safe one. Water now can be drunk by babies. Fukushima is 250 km north of Tokyo.

At the same time, Australia announced a ban on the import of food from areas of Japan close to Fukushima, saying it was a safety measure, in compliance with international standards. The banned products include milk, milk products, fruit and vegetables, sea wheat and seafood.

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