Japan has been struck by two powerful earthquakes on Thursday with the local meteorological agency warning of tsunamis striking the coastal areas of the Island country.


A 6.9-magnitude earthquake followed by a 7.1 tremor shook the southern part of the country. While the first quake was centred at a depth of 33 kilometres, about 29 kilometres southeast of Miyazaki on Kyushu, the second tremor was located at a depth of 26 metres and was 20 kilometres northeast of Miyazaki.


Visuals from Japan showed the magnitude of the quakes with cars on the streets shaking along with the houses. 






A video doing rounds on social media showed houses trembling along with the parked cars in a neighbourhood. There is also a rattling sound in the background. 


Another video from inside a shopping mall showed the clothes hung up in stands shaking with the tremors. A third video shows the cars waiting at the traffic lights shaking along with billboards and traffic light.






Strong earthquakes are not uncommon in Japan as the country is one of the world's most tectonically active countries. Japan in located on top of the four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific "Ring of Fire".


However, the Thursday's tremors have been one of the most powerful quakes in recent months. 


Footage from a house shows the kitchen shaking due to the earthquake while things fall of their place. 






On New Year's Day, at least 260 people died after a massive earthquake hit the peninsula, including 30 "quake-linked" deaths. The January 1 quake and its aftershocks toppled buildings, caused fires and knocked out infrastructure at a time when families were celebrating the new year.


The archipelago, home to around 125 million people, experiences around 1,500 jolts every year and accounts for around 18 percent of the world's earthquakes.