Earthquake damage in Japan Image: AFP
After the devastating earthquake in Japan, a more than 90-year-old woman who had been buried for five days was rescued from the rubble of a house. However, another 222 people are still missing. The hope of saving her is dwindling.
After the devastating earthquake in Japan, an elderly woman who had been buried for five days was rescued from the rubble of a house on Saturday. The woman, who is more than 90 years old, was taken to hospital after being rescued in the city of Suzu, according to television broadcaster NHK. In the meantime, however, the already slim hope of being able to save the around 222 people who were still missing was fading.
Snowfall and stormy winds were forecast for Sunday for the Noto peninsula, which was particularly hard hit by the quake. This means that conditions for several communities cut off from the outside world by around 1,000 landslides are likely to continue to deteriorate. The transport of relief goods to areas without access to electricity and running water is massively difficult. On Saturday, 30,000 people were still staying in 366 state-run emergency shelters.
The Japanese main island of Honshu was shaken on New Year’s Day by a severe earthquake of magnitude 7.5 as well as dozens of aftershocks and hit by tsunami waves. At least 126 people died as a result, but the number will continue to rise given the high number of missing people. Countless houses on the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture collapsed or were damaged. Streets became impassable and a major fire destroyed a historic market district in the port city of Wajima.
Japan is shaken by hundreds of earthquakes every year. Most of them do not leave any damage, which is due, among other things, to strict building regulations that have been in force for decades. Over the past five years, earthquakes have increased in strength and frequency, particularly in the Noto region.
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