A day after the Japan earthquake tragedy, authorities have announced that at least 48 people died in the powerful earthquake that rocked western Japan on Monday, as they searched the debris of collapsed and burned buildings.
A city in Ishikawa Prefecture, Wajima, was the coastal epicentre of the earthquake, which sparked tsunami warnings, major evacuations, and widespread power disruptions after it struck at 4:10 p.m. on New Year Day.
After the quake, which recorded 7.6 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale, a major fire broke out in Wajima. Some died after getting caught in the rubble of demolished structures.
The tsunami warnings were cancelled on Tuesday morning, as the tremor did not create the huge waves that had been predicted. The damage, which included crumbled roads, burnt houses, and commercial facilities, was still being assessed by police, firefighters, and members of the country’s Self-Defense Forces.
According to the chief cabinet secretary, Yoshimasa Hayashi, approximately 33,000 houses in Ishikawa and neighbouring Niigata Prefecture were without power on Tuesday morning and approximately 20,000 houses in four prefectures lacked running water.
According to Mr. Hayashi, 57,360 people had abandoned their houses and gone to roughly 1,000 different evacuation facilities across the affected prefectures.
He stated that officials were still looking for those buried beneath rubble after 120 such occurrences were reported to local police or fire departments, raising the prospect of a larger death toll. According to Mr. Hayashi, nuclear power reactors in the impacted prefectures continue to operate normally.
Residents in the affected areas have been told to brace themselves for further earthquakes, landslides, and new tsunami warnings.
The Japan Meteorological Agency’s Noriko Kamaya told reporters at a press conference on Tuesday morning that there was a 10 to 20% probability that an earthquake of equal magnitude would occur within the next week. She warned citizens to be cautious when engaging in sea-based activities such as fishing.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters on Tuesday that workers were trying to clear roads that had been obstructed by landslides or destroyed houses. He also stated that stores were providing water, food, blankets, portable toilets, and other necessities to individuals residing in evacuation centers.
