Japan Rocked By 6.7 Magnitude Earthquake Leaving at Least 2 Dead, 125 Injured
By Bryan Ke
A 6.7 magnitude earthquake recently shook Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost prefecture, as other parts of the country recover from the devastation caused by Typhoon Jebi that wreaked havoc earlier this week.
The earthquake hit southern Hokkaido at around 3 a.m. on Thursday at the depth of 40 kilometers (24 miles) with its epicenter said to be located east of the city of Tomakomai, according to Japan’s Meteorological Agency via TIME.
The quake traveled up to the prefecture’s capital, Sapporo, where 1.9 million people live.
It triggered many landslides that crushed homes and knocked out power to about 2.9 million households in the affected area which was caused by the emergency shutdown of the main thermal power plant at Tomato Atsuma.
The power plant is responsible for powering up more than half of Hokkaido’s households.
There are roughly 125 people injured so far and nearly 40 people are still missing, according to the tally of Japanese national broadcast network NHK. Two people have been confirmed dead from the tragedy.
However, Japanese reports suggest that at least five people are still trapped under the rubble of homes destroyed by the landslide in the town of Atsuma, SoraNews24 reported.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that more than 4,000 defense force soldiers have been deployed in the affected areas of the earthquake, and if needed, the number could increase for up to 25,000 more personnel, CNN reported.
Water supplies have also been cut in a large number of homes. The government is now providing six-liter packs of water to residents at many water distribution points.
Residents also lined up at convenience stores that are still operating after the disaster to stock up on essential supplies.
Transportation services were also suspended with many travelers left stranded mainly at Hokkaido’s New Chitose international airport after the cancellation of all domestic and international flights.
Officials have warned people who are still in the area for any possible aftershocks in the coming days. No tsunami warning has been raised following the earthquake.
Featured image (left) via Twitter / usapon0301 | (right) via Twitter / k_kikuchi_tw
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