A restaurant fire has spread to at least 140 buildings in a small Japanese coastal city.

The blaze started in the morning at a ramen shop in Itoigawa city, Japan's Fire and Disaster Management Agency said.

Fanned by winds gusting to 35mph, the blaze had reached about 140 houses and other buildings by mid-afternoon.

There were two reports of minor injuries: one woman who inhaled smoke and another who fell, the fire and disaster agency said. Authorities issued an evacuation advisory for about 300 households.

Itoigawa is in Niigata prefecture, about 160 miles north-west of Tokyo. The cause of the fire is under investigation.