TOKYO - A powerful 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck a rural area of northern Japan on Saturday, killing at least two people, triggering landslides and reportedly knocking down a bridge. At least 64 people were injured, several seriously.
 |
Operators were inspecting nuclear power plants in the area, but there were no immediate reports of damage, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura. Electricity had been cut to about 29,000 households in the quake zone, he said.
There was no danger of tsunami. Several aftershocks, including one with a magnitude of 5.6, struck the area in the hours after the initial temblor.
The 8:43 a.m. (2343 GMT Friday) quake was centered in the northern prefecture (state) of Iwate about 250 miles (400 kilometers) north of Tokyo, and was located about 6.2 miles (10 kilometers) underground. It was felt as far away as the capital.
One of the deaths was a man who ran out of a building in fear and was hit by a passing truck, and the other confirmed death was a man who was buried in a landslide while he was fishing, Machimura said.
"It shook so violently that I couldn't stand still. I had to lean on the wall," said Masanori Oikawa, an Oshu city official who was at home near the epicenter when the quake struck. "When I rushed to the office, cabinets had been thrown onto the floor and things on the desks were scattered all over the place."
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said at least 64 people were injured, including two in critical condition. One of them was a dam worker in Iwate who was hit by falling rocks.
Footage shot from media helicopters showed numerous landslides on rural roads running along knots of mountains separated by long stretches of rice fields. The footage aired on NHK also showed what appeared to be a pedestrian stairway near a gorge had that collapsed.
In the town of Natori, three people were seriously injured while riding on a bus over a bridge when the quake hit, the disaster management agency said.
"We must assess the situation as quickly possible and do utmost in our relief activities," said Machimura.
 |
The meteorological agency issued a warning of a second quake, and a 5.6-magnitude aftershock hit the same area, but it was unclear whether the warning preceded the aftershock. Japan is experimenting with an earthquake warning system.
Footage from the closest large city, Sendai, showed the force of the quake shook surveillance cameras for 30 seconds. NHK interviewed an official from Miyagi prefecture, where Sendai is located, who said he saw tiles coming off the roofs of some homes.
"It was scary. It was difficult to stand up," said Sachiko Sugihara, a convenience store worker in Oshu in a separate interview with NHK. "The TV fell over and the refrigerator shook."
Windows broke at a nursery school in the area, injuring seven children and teachers, but none seriously, according to the Oshu City official, Oikawa.
Sendai appeared largely unscathed.
"So far we have not received any reports of damage or injuries. Everything is normal," Hideki Hara, a police official in Sendai, told the AP. "Phone lines, water and electricity are all working right now."
The meteorological agency originally said the earthquake was magnitude 7.0 but later revised it to 7.2.
Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone areas in the world. Last July, a 6.8-magnitude quake killed 11 people in Niigata, just southwest of Saturday's epicenter, damaging a nuclear reactor and causing radioactive leaks.
A major quake hit the southwestern city of Kobe in January 1995, killing more than 6,400 people.
