TOKYO — Japan issued a tsunami warning today and told Pacific coast residents to flee to higher ground after a powerful earthquake hit off sparsely populated islands to the north.

Japan's meteorological agency initially predicted that a 6½-foot tsunami would hit the Pacific coast of Japan's northernmost island of Hokkaido and main island of Honshu this morning.

A 16-inch wave hit the port of Nemuro on Hokkaido soon after, but live footage from the area showed calm seas.

The agency warned that larger waves could follow.