A major earthquake rocked Japan's northern coast late Monday, with the country's meteorological agency recording several tsunami waves reached the shoreline and local media reporting injuries.

The magnitude 7.6 quake -- which struck off Misawa on Japan's Pacific coast -- reportedly forced residents to flee their homes and left thousands of people without power.

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a tsunami warning, with one wave hitting a port in the northern region of Aomori, where Misawa is located.

Several more waves reached the coast, measuring up to 70 centimetres (two feet, four inches), JMA reported.

Early Tuesday the agency lifted the tsunami warning, according to Kyodo news agency. JMA kept lower-grade advisories in effect for parts of northern Japan for several hours, but

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