Hundreds of tonnes of groundwater which seeped into a stricken nuclear plant in Japan began to be released out to sea Wednesday, the plant’s operators said.

Tokyo Electric Power Co, which operates the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, said the water’s radiation level met safety guidelines, but it was not clear whether the water was more radioactive than normal groundwater.

Guangdong province plans to build an earthquake and tsunami monitoring and pre-warning center, according to the provincial earthquake administration.

An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.6 struck in the Pacific Ocean on Sunday deep in the ocean about 328 miles (525 km) south of Suva, Fiji, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

A strong earthquake jolted Tokyo early Monday, rattling windows and nerves though there were no initial reports of major damage.

Damage caused by natural disasters has sharply been reduced since April 29, 1991 when a cyclonic storm ripped through the coastal region, killing nearly 138,882 people and 1,061,029 livestock.

An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.6 rattled the coast of British Columbia's Vancouver Island on Wednesday evening and was felt by hundreds of people in dozens of cities in Canada and the United S

The quake was centered 100 km (60 miles) south of Kira Kira on the island of Makira at a depth of 29 km (18 miles), according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The first tsunami waves have reached Chile's coastline following a magnitude 7.6 earthquake, the country's navy said on Thursday.

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a tsunami alert for Pacific coastal areas of Hokkaido and the Tohoku region

A tsunami of up to 40 cm was observed early Thursday at a port of Iwate prefecture, which lies on the Pacific coast of northeastern Japan, after a powerful 8.2-magnitude earthquake in Chile, local media reported.

A powerful 8.2-magnitude earthquake hit northern Chile's Pacific coast, killing at least six persons as tsunami waves of more than two metres lashed the shore.

The quake sent panicked residents pouring into the streets, with more than 900,000 people along Chile's coast heeding government orders to evacuate their homes and seek higher ground.