WAJIMA, Japan – A series of powerful earthquakes hit western Japan, leaving at least eight people dead and damaging buildings, vehicles, and boats. Aftershocks continued to shake Ishikawa prefecture and nearby areas a day after a magnitude 7.6 temblor slammed the area on Monday afternoon.
Eight people were confirmed dead in Wajima city, with seven others seriously injured and damage to homes that could not immediately be assessed. Japan’s military dispatched 1,000 soldiers to the disaster zones to join rescue efforts, facing “large-scale damage.”
News videos showed rows of collapsed houses, wooden structures flattened, and cars overturned. Half-sunken ships floated in bays where tsunami waves had rolled in. The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a major tsunami warning for Ishikawa and lower-level tsunami warnings for the rest of the western coast of Japan’s main island. The warning was downgraded several hours later, and all tsunami warnings were lifted. Waves measuring more than one metre hit some places.
People who were evacuated from their houses huddled in auditoriums, schools, and community centres. U.S. President Joe Biden said his administration was “ready to provide any necessary assistance for the Japanese people.” Japan is frequently hit by earthquakes because of its location along the “Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin.
The earthquakes left at least eight people dead in Wajima city and continue to pose a risk of more strong quakes. Japan’s military dispatched 1,000 soldiers to the disaster zones to join rescue efforts, facing “large-scale damage.” The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a major tsunami warning for parts of the western coast of Japan’s main island, which was later downgraded, and all tsunami warnings were lifted. U.S. President Joe Biden expressed readiness to provide assistance for the Japanese people in the aftermath of the earthquakes.