An Ishikawa prefectural official told AFP news agency that the death toll had reached 48.
Japanese rescuers searched for survivors in the face of repeated powerful followingshocks on Tuesday.
The 7.5-magnitude earthquake that struck Ishikawa Prefecture triggered tsunami waves more than a meter high, collapsed buildings, caused a major fire at the port and destroyed roads.
As the day progressed, the extent of the devastation on the Noto Peninsula became apparent: buildings were still burning, homes were razed to the ground, and fishing boats had sunk or washed ashore.
“Extremely extensive damage has been confirmed, including many casualties, building collapses and fires,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said following a disaster management meeting, calling for an urgent search and rescue of victims.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) said the earthquake had a magnitude of 7.5. The Japan Meteorological Agency measured the magnitude at 7.6 and said it was one of more than 150 tremors that shook the region by Tuesday morning.
Several strong followingshocks were felt early Tuesday, including a 5.6-magnitude shock that forced national broadcaster NHK to cut a special program.
Tsunami warnings have been cancelled
On Monday, waves of at least 1.2m crashed through the city of Wajima in Ishikawa Prefecture, while several smaller tsunamis were recorded elsewhere.
Warnings of much larger waves failed to materialize, and Japan canceled all tsunami warnings on Tuesday.
Images posted on social media showed cars, houses and bridges shaking violently, with terrified people hiding in shops and train stations in Ishikawa.
Houses collapsed, huge cracks appeared in roads, and landslides formed in others. Meteorologists warned that the rains might further erode the soil on the hillsides.
Fire crews searched for survivors under a collapsed commercial building in Wajima, television footage showed.
“Hold on!” Hold on,” they shouted as they removed piles of wooden beams with a chainsaw.
As many as 200 buildings were reportedly engulfed in the fire in Wajima, with people evacuated in the dark, some with babies.
NHK reported that 25 houses collapsed in the city, including 14 houses where people may have been trapped.
The officer on duty at the Wajima Fire Department said the services were overwhelmed with calls and reports of damage on Tuesday.
Ishikawa Governor Hiroshi Hase wrote on social media that roads were impassable in many areas due to landslides or cracks, and a number of ships capsized in the port of Suzu, he said.
According to the Fire Safety and Disaster Management Agency, a total of 62,000 people were ordered to evacuate. people.
The Ministry of Defense reported that regarding 1 thousand people stayed at the military base.
The number of earthquakes is constantly increasing
Monday’s earthquake also shook apartments in the capital, Tokyo, regarding 300 km away. In the capital, among other things, a public event to welcome the New Year, which was supposed to be attended by Emperor Naruhito (Naruhito) and members of his family, was canceled.
About 1.4 thousand people were stuck in the trains that were stopped at night. people, including Sakartvelo ambassador Teimuraz Ležavas, who praised the “kindness of station employees and surrounding passengers” on social networks.
NHK reported that around 1,000 more were stranded for almost a day following local high-speed trains were suspended on Monday. people.
About 500 people were also stranded at the damaged Noto airport, with access roads blocked and the runway riddled with cracks.
Hundreds of earthquakes occur in Japan every year, but the vast majority do not cause any damage.
A Japanese government report says that since 2018, the number of earthquakes in the Noto Peninsula region has been steadily increasing.
The country was particularly shaken by the powerful 9-magnitude underwater earthquake off the coast in the northeast in 2011, which caused a tsunami, during which regarding 18,500 people died or went missing. people.
It also flooded the Fukushima nuclear power plant, causing one of the world’s worst nuclear disasters.
Japan’s nuclear power authority said there were no problems at the Shika NPP in Ishikawa and other power plants following the latest quake.
On Tuesday, along with the United States and other countries, China expressed its condolences to Japan.
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2024-07-13 04:41:36