JAPAN: Japan is clearing up after a series of devastating earthquakes which shook the centre and north of the country on Saturday evening, killing 21, injuring at least 1,800 and levelling hundreds of buildings. David McNeill reports from Tokyo.
The initial 6.8 quake struck Niigata about 260 km north of Tokyo just before 6 p.m. It was followed by two powerful aftershocks which tore up roads, toppled buildings and pylons and cut power to at least 300,000 homes.
Dozens of landslides were also reported in an area which has already been hit by months of typhoons and torrential rain.
The quakes were felt over much of the central island of Honshu and swayed tall buildings in Tokyo for up to a minute. About 70,000 people were taking refuge in community centres and schools around Niigata last night as dozens of aftershocks continued to shake already weakened foundations. Hundreds more were being treated in hospitals for cuts, broken bones and shock.
The government yesterday sent the disaster management minister to assess the damage and co- ordinate rescue efforts and the restoration of power and water.
Rescue workers and military personnel are racing to deal with impact of the disaster before tomorrow, when heavy rain is gain expected, bringing the threat of further landslides.
Many victims are stranded in villages and towns which have been cut off by landslides and caved-in roads, with blackouts and fallen telephone lines adding to their difficulties.
Saturday's quake was Japan's worst since 1995, when 6,400 people were killed and much of Kobe city was destroyed.
Many of the Niigata victims, including three young children, were killed when old wooden houses collapsed on top of them in or around the city of Ojiya. Two men were killed under falling concrete walls and a pensioner apparently died of shock in her kitchen.
NHK television said a 76-year- old hospital patient was found dead in the city's hospital after the quake pulled out the tubes of his respirator.
Takejiro Hoshino said that he had failed to save his 12-year-old grandson when their house collapsed. "I got out and then we all went back to try to save the others, but it was too late."
Shoji Takizawa from Toka town near Ojiya said he had spent the night in a car with his wife and son. Many other people have set up tents outside their homes or in local school grounds after being told by the Meteorological Agency to stay out of partially collapsed buildings. The agency has warned that another powerful quake some time next week is possible.
The quakes derailed the Bullet Train as it sped to Niigata to Tokyo at over 200 k.p.h near the epicentre with 155 passengers. All escaped unharmed in what was the service's first derailment in its 40-year history. Tokyo Electric Power Co, which operates a nuclear plant in Kashiwazaki in Niigata, said last night the plant was running normally.
Japan is still struggling to recover from a series of devastating typhoons, which have left about 220 people dead, scores missing or injured and millions of dollars in damages.