At least20 people were killed and others injured in a powerful earthquake that hit off the Noto Peninsula on Japan’s northwest coast, wrecking buildings, buckling roads and triggering fires.
Firefighters were battling a blaze that broke out in the the city of Wajima and spread to more than 50 houses and buildings after Monday’s magnitude-7.6 tremor, public broadcaster NHK said. Residents were warned to remain alert to the possibility of a tsunami across almost the entire length of the Sea of Japan coast, though warnings of a major tsunami were lifted.
Six people have been confirmed dead as of Tuesday morning, NHK had said at first. The toll recorded later increased to 20 people. So far, the largest tsunami recorded after the quake was in Wajima, at about 1.2 meters (4 feet). Residents in large parts of the area about 315 kilometers (195 miles) northwest of Tokyo were urged to evacuate to higher ground away from the coast, and to remain there until the warning is lifted.
Some train services were suspended and power plants halted operations, while several roads and an airport runway were closed due to the damage. Mobile phone services were also affected. About 44,700 households were without power as of Tuesday morning, according to Hokuriku Electric.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters late Monday his would take the lead in responding to the disaster and will convene a meeting Tuesday of an emergency disaster control taskforce.
Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority said in an emailed statement there have been no abnormalities found at the nuclear power plants in the region.
The earthquake impacted several power plants in the region. Hokuriku Electric Power Co.’s Nanao Ohta power plant’s coal-fired units were halted due to the quake, leading to a loss of about 1.2 gigawatts of capacity, according to Japan Electric Power Exchange’s website. Jera Co. also halted a gas-fired unit at its Joetsu power station for inspection and plans to restart it tomorrow, according to JEPX website.
First Published: Jan 2, 2024 5:20 AM IST
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