About 30 people have been confirmed dead while thousands were evacuated after an earthquake hit Japan on Monday, the New Year’s Day.
According to Reuters, the rescue teams on Tuesday struggled to reach isolated areas where buildings had been toppled, roads wrecked and power cut to tens of thousands of homes.
The 7.6 magnitude quake struck on Monday afternoon, prompting inhabitants in some coastal districts to flee to higher ground as tsunami waves swept cars and houses into the sea off Japan’s west coast.
Thousands of army men, firefighters, and police officials from throughout the country have been rushed to the worst-affected area in Ishikawa prefecture’s Noto peninsula.
“The search and rescue of those impacted by the quake is a battle against time,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was quoted by Reuters.
It was also learnt that on Monday night the Japanese government had ordered the evacuation of approximately 100,000 people, directing them to sports halls and school gymnasiums, which are routinely utilised as evacuation centres in emergencies.
On Tuesday, authorities lifted tsunami warnings, allowing many people to return home.
But around 33,000 households remained without power in Ishikawa prefecture on Tuesday after a night where temperatures dropped below freezing, according to Hokuriku Electric Power’s (9505.T) website. Most areas in the northern Noto peninsula also have no water supply, NHK reported.
Rescuers were having difficulty reaching the northern tip of the Noto peninsula due to ruined roads, according to Kishida, and helicopter scans had revealed numerous fires and severe damage to buildings and infrastructure.
Many train services as well as aircraft into the area have been halted. According to public broadcaster NHK, Noto’s airport was closed owing to damage to its runway, terminal, and access roads, leaving 500 people stuck inside automobiles in its parking lot.
According to Suzu’s mayor, Masuhiro Izumiya, up to 1,000 houses may have been damaged in the seaside town of little over 5,000 people near the epicentre of the quake.
“The situation is catastrophic,” he said.
So far, authorities in Ishikawa prefecture have documented 30 deaths, with half of those occurring in Wajima, another hard-hit city on the peninsula’s isolated northern point.
According to Japan’s fire and disaster management agency, firefighters have been battling blazes in various cities and attempting to free additional individuals trapped in collapsed structures.
According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, more than 140 tremors have been reported since the quake struck on Monday, and additional powerful shocks are possible in the coming days.
Nobuko Sugimori, 74, of Nanao city in Ishikawa, told Reuters she had never felt a tremor like this before.
“I tried to hold the TV set to keep it from toppling over, but I could not even keep myself from swaying violently from side to side,” Sugimori said.
A car was buried under a fallen structure across the street, where inhabitants had another close encounter.
Fujiko Ueno, 73, said almost 20 people were in her house for a New Year’s Eve celebration when the earthquake struck, but they all escaped unharmed.
