This is the moment a city in Tokyo was plunged into darkness after a magnitude 7.4 quake struck Japan's eastern coast.

Video taken shortly before midnight in Chofu City shows street lamps and building lights eerily shutting off all at once as the quake cut off power to hundreds of thousands of households in the capital.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said at least four people had died while Japan’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency confirmed at least 94 injuries.

The earthquake struck off the coast of Fukushima prefecture at 11:36 pm local time at a depth of 60 kilometres, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

Tsunami warnings were raised, but lifted early Thursday morning. Two million homes - including 700,000 in Tokyo - lost electricity, Utility provider Utility Tokyo Electric Power Company said.

The earthquake hit less than a week after Japan marked the anniversary of the 2011 disaster that devastated the region. A powerful magnitude 9.1 earthquake triggered a tsunami and nuclear plant meltdowns that left almost 20,000 people dead and 2,500 others missing.

Japan lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire, an area frequently disturbed by volcanic eruptions and earthquakes due to plate tectonics.