At least 24 people have been confirmed dead in the powerful earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula and surrounding areas in central Japan on New Year's Day as more reports of damage came in and rescuers raced to find survivors on Tuesday.
The magnitude-7.6 quake caused extensive structural damage and fires in the city of Wajima in Ishikawa Prefecture, as continuing aftershocks and rubble on roads hampered rescue operations. There have been at least 50 aftershocks in the region.
The deaths included seven victims at Wajima Municipal Hospital, city officials said.
Tsunami warnings covering extensive areas along the Sea of Japan were lifted Tuesday morning, after the highest wave of around 1.2 meters reached Wajima Port on Monday night following the 4:10 p.m. quake.
Footage taken by the public broadcaster NHK on Tuesday morning showed a seven-story building toppled over sideways and smoke rising in a central area of Wajima known for its morning market where a large blaze broke out Monday.
Fires have engulfed over 200 structures in the central Wajima area, but the chances of them spreading further are slim, Ishikawa prefectural officials said.
There have been 14 reports of people being trapped under rubble in the city, other officials said.
The quake has also caused injuries and structural damage in Niigata, Toyama, Fukui and Gifu prefectures.
"It is extremely difficult for vehicles to enter northern areas of the Noto Peninsula," Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said at a press conference, adding the central government has been coordinating shipment of relief supplies using ships.
About 1,000 Self-Defense Force personnel are engaged in rescue and relief operations, Kishida said.
The earthquake was centered around 30 kilometers east-northeast of Wajima with a provisional depth of 16 km, registering a maximum 7 on the country's seismic intensity scale, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
A level-7 quake is described as making it impossible for people to remain standing. Such a temblor was last recorded in 2018 in Hokkaido, the weather agency said.
Some 30 people were injured due to the earthquake in Ishikawa and other prefectures, local authorities said. The ceiling collapsed at a pachinko parlor in Toyama Prefecture, injuring eight people, two of them seriously, the prefectural government said.
In Ishikawa, approximately 32,500 homes lost power.
The quake was felt in a wide area from Hokkaido in northern Japan to Kyushu in the country's southwest. Tsunami warnings and advisories were issued for prefectures on the Sea of Japan side.
The quake and aftershocks disrupted public transportation to and from the affected areas, with JR East temporarily suspending the operations of all bullet trains on the Tohoku, Joetsu and Hokuriku lines, while All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines canceled 25 flights.
A total of more than 97,000 people in nine prefectures were instructed to evacuate, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency.
About 1,000 people evacuated to an Air Self-Defense Force base in Wajima, and the Self-Defense Forces are distributing blankets, water and food, the Defense Ministry said.
The SDF sent members on a disaster relief mission in response to a request by Ishikawa Gov. Hiroshi Hase.
North and South Korea both issued similar alerts for their eastern coastal areas, according to local media and authorities.
The Russian government issued a tsunami warning for the western coastal region of Sakhalin in the Far East following the Japanese earthquake, the Interfax news agency said.
Source: Japan Today
BDST: 1009 HRS, JAN 02, 2024
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