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South Korea Rattled by Rare 5.4-Magnitude Quake

by Reuters

   SEOUL --

   A rare earthquake of magnitude 5.4

   rattled South Korea on Wednesday, its second most powerful quake on
   record, shaking buildings but causing no major damage or injuries.

   The quake struck about 9 km (5 miles) north of the southeastern port
   city of Pohang, the Korea Meteorological Administration said in a news
   briefing.

   Tremors were felt across the country but operations at nuclear reactors
   were not affected, the state-run nuclear operator Korea Hydro & Nuclear
   Power Co said in a statement.

   South Korea has relatively little seismic activity, compared with Japan
   to the east.

   Its strongest quake on record was magnitude 5.8 in September last year.