7.4 magnitude earthquake shakes Japan: At least one dead, thousands of households left without power

LAST UPDATE: 12:20

Authorities and residents of northeastern Japan are now trying to clear the damage from the 7.4 magnitude earthquake that struck the area yesterday, Wednesday, killing at least one person and injuring more than 160, according to a revised downstream report. authorities.

The quake caused parts of houses to collapse, a train to be derailed without causing casualties, cracks in highways and damage to department store goods.

But the damage appears to be relatively small in relation to the magnitude of the quake, which mainly affected Fukushima and Migagi prefectures in northeastern Japan.

Hirokazu Matsuno, a government spokesman, spoke this afternoon (Japan time) about one confirmed death and another that has not yet been confirmed, having initially reported four deaths.

Tens of thousands of households were still without electricity this morning, eleven hours after the strong earthquake. Many transport connections – roads, railways … – were cut in half in the northeastern part of the archipelago.

Authorities and companies, from semiconductor manufacturers to major automakers, are still trying to assess the damage from the 7.4-magnitude quake that struck shortly before midnight Wednesday (local time). Problems in supply chains will make things even worse internationally in the production of mobile phones, various types of electronic devices and cars.

The earthquake reminded many of the disaster of March 11, 2011 in the same area. Traffic on high-speed Xinxen trains has been suspended until recently, and at least one motorway has been closed for inspections.

Parts of the facades of buildings fell on streets, while in some areas the electricity supply remains cut off.

Some 24,270 households served by the Tohoku company continued to be without electricity in the morning, although the company assured that in most cases the electricity supply will be restored during the day.

The quake, which was initially estimated to have a magnitude of 7.3 but was later revised to 7.4 by the Japan Meteorological and Seismological Service, was recorded at 23:36 (local time) at sea off Fukushima Prefecture. The focal depth was 60 km.

The 2011 catastrophe, the anniversary of which was celebrated last week in the country, claimed 18,000 lives.

A tsunami alert was issued after yesterday’s quake but was canceled early this morning. An increase in sea level has been reported in some areas, however so far no serious damage has been recorded anywhere.

The 2011 earthquake and tsunami wreaked havoc on the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Yesterday’s quake did not cause any damage to any of Japan’s nuclear power plants, although authorities said a fire alarm was triggered in one of the building’s damaged buildings.

With information from AMPE