Powerful earthquakes have hit both Venezuela and Japan, with the one in Venezuela triggering localised tsunami warnings and advisories across the region.
The earthquake in Venezuela had a magnitude of 7.1, while the one in Japan had a magnitude of 6.9.
According to the US Geological Survey, the seismic event occurred at a depth of roughly 10 kilometres, with its epicentre located just west of the coastal community of Moron.
The violent tremors heavily shook the capital, Caracas, forcing residents to evacuate swaying high-rise buildings.
A second earthquakes of magnitude above 7struck Venezuela subsequently, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported.
"This earthquake was the second event in a doublet. This magnitude 7.5 mainshock was preceded by 39 seconds by a 7.2 foreshock," USGS said, updating an earlier assessment of the latter's magnitude.
The tsunami threat warning was issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center for the immediate coast of Venezuela, as well as the neighbouring islands of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao.
The tsunami advisory was activated for Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands while authorities actively monitor coastal tide gauges for unusual wave activity.
Civil defence authorities were deploying to the hardest-hit areas near the epicentre to evaluate infrastructure damage.
USGS warned that high casualties and extensive damage are likely in Venezuela after the earthquake.
No tsunami warning in Japan
In Japan, no tsunami warning was issued. The epicentre of the quake was off the coast of Iwate prefecture, at a depth of about 50 km, and no damage from a tsunami is feared except for slight sea level changes, the agency said.
The earthquake hit Aomori prefecture with an intensity of 6-plus, a situation where typically "it is impossible to remain standing or to move without crawling", on the Japanese scale of 0-7, it said.
Tohoku Electric Power said no irregularities were found at its Onagawa and idled Higashidori nuclear power plants following the earthquake.
East Japan Railway said it has halted some trains, including Tohoku Shinkansen high-speed rail services, after the quake.
Earthquakes are common in Japan, one of the world's most seismically active areas. Japan accounts for about one-fifth of the world's earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater.
