At least 2 dead in Japan earthquake
TOKYO (AP) - June 13, 2008 Two nuclear power plants in the area were undergoing inspections
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.
The 8:43 a.m. quake was centered in the northern prefecture
(state) of Iwate about 280 miles north of Tokyo. It was felt as far
away as the capital.
"It shook so violently that I couldn't stand still. I had to
lean on the wall," said Masanori Oikawa, an Oshu city official 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."
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.
Fire and Disaster Management Agency spokesmen said at least 64
people were injured, including at least two people who in critical
condition. One of them was a dam worker in Iwate, who was hit by
falling rock. National broadcaster NHK said 67 people were hurt.
Footage shot from media helicopters showed numerous landslides
onto rural roads running along knots of mountains separated by long
stretches of rice fields. The footage aired on national broadcaster
NHK also showed a bridge that had collapsed.
National broadcaster NHK said four people were seriously injured
while riding on a bus over a bridge when the quake hit.
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.
"A few items fell off the shelves, such as cosmetics and
pottery tea cups," Minoru Takada, 41, manager of Seven-Eleven in
Oshu, in Iwate prefecture, told The Associated Press. "There
wasn't any panic."
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 and NHK said some
teachers and children were injured, though it was unclear how
seriously.
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."
Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone areas in the world.
The most recent major quake in Japan killed more than 6,400 people
in the city of Kobe in January 1995.
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.