Over 1,000 Feared Dead, Possible Radiation Leaks
More than 1,000 people were feared dead after Japan’s strongest earthquake on record triggered a destructive tsunami, the government said Saturday as it expressed concerns over possible radiation leaks from damaged nuclear reactors.
Japan was assessing the damage from Friday’s 8.9-magnitude quake and devastating tsunami that rocked the north-eastern part of the country, even as aftershocks continued to hit.
The death toll would probably be well over 1,000, said Yukio Edano, chief cabinet secretary.
Authorities had recovered hundreds of bodies, with more than 1,000 people still missing and many injured, news reports said.
The government feared more large-scale aftershocks could add to the destruction, as the Meteorological Agency issued further tsunami warnings for many coastal regions in the country.
The agency said more than 100 aftershocks had occurred, many of them stronger than magnitude-6 on the Richter scale.
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The Nikkei business daily said some 210,000 people had been evacuated in north-eastern Japan, while thousands were stranded in Miyagi, waiting for assistance.
International assistance was on its way, as the United States dispatched more than 140 personnel on Friday, and New Zealand said Saturday it would send a 48-member search-and-rescue team.
The Japanese government had mobilised 50,000 search and rescue workers, and sent 190 aircraft and 25 vessels to areas affected by the quake and tsunami.
Officials were working with the US military stationed in Japan to transport about 900 Japanese troops and 250 vehicles by US ships.
Thousands of houses were destroyed, several bridges collapsed, bus and train services were shut down and many roads were closed. Mobile phone networks and landline services were affected.
Television footage showed flattened fishing villages and shattered cities with piles of rubble on the streets as the tsunami surged 5 kilometres inland in some areas, forcing many to spend the night on the roofs of their houses as temperature dropped to freezing point.
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