Japanese prime minister uninjured amid sound of explosion at port he was visiting

TOKYO — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was uninjured after an explosion was heard at a port where he was scheduled to give a speech on the country’s west coast Saturday, public broadcaster NHK reported.

Kishida was in Saikazaki Port in western Wakayama Prefecture to speak when someone screamed, authorities swarmed a man, and the sound of an explosion was heard, the Japanese broadcaster said.

The sound was accompanied by smoke, but no injuries were reported and there were no signs of combustion, NHK reported.

Kishida was escorted to a vehicle by security, NHK reported.

The prime minister had just finished sampling some food at the port, and was about 65 feet from where the incident occurred, the broadcaster said.

The incident happened about nine months after Kishida’s predecessor, Shinzo Abe, was assassinated during a campaign event in the western city of Nara, near Kyoto.