ID :
13750
Fri, 07/25/2008 - 12:05
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https://oananews.org//node/13750
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Over 130 injured as strong quake hits northeastern Japan
TOKYO, July 25 Kyodo - A total of 132 people, mainly in Iwate and Aomori prefectures, were injured as a strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 jolted northeastern Japan early Thursday.
The quake measured upper 6 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in the town of Hirono in Iwate Prefecture and lower 6 in parts of Aomori Prefecture, including Hachinohe, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.
It was felt in an extensive area from Hokkaido in the north to the Kanto region including Tokyo.
The focus of the quake was about 108 kilometers underground in the northern coastal area of Iwate Prefecture.
As the focus was deep underground, major aftershocks are unlikely, the meteorological agency said, adding that aftershocks measuring 4 on the Japanese scale may occur in the near future.
A Kyodo News tally as of Thursday night showed that 132 people had been injured in Iwate, Aomori, Miyagi, Akita, Hokkaido, Yamagata, Fukushima and Chiba. The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said 28 people were seriously injured.
In Hirono, Iwate Prefecture, where the strongest jolt was felt, a 58-year-old woman broke her leg, the National Police Agency said. A 41-year-old woman in Kitakami in the same prefecture broke a toe after tripping on the stairs.
A 5-year-old boy in Kitakami suffered heavy burns to his back after a pot containing hot water fell on him, the agency said. Many other people were injured by falling glass during the temblor, according to the police.
No major damage has been observed so far by helicopter, the Land,Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry said.
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said 24 homes were partially damaged.
More than 10 schools in Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture, were found to have suffered damage including collapsed ceilings but injuries were limited as the quake took place just past midnight when most people were at home.
East Japan Railway Co. temporarily suspended bullet train services on the Tohoku and Akita Shinkansen lines as damage to overhead wires was found at several points on the Tohoku Shinkansen Line.
A total of 59 bullet train services on the two lines were cancelled Thursday with three others delayed by up to 24 minutes, affecting around 22,000 passengers, JR East said. Services were resumed at around 2 p.m.
JR East suspended conventional train services in Sendai and northward on Thursday and is expecting some cancellations and delays on Friday.
A government team led by National Public Safety Commission Chairman Shinya Izumi, who is also minister in charge of disaster preparedness measures, arrived Thursday morning in Hirono to investigate the damage from the 12:26 a.m. quake and to give instructions.
The government set up a task force at the prime minister's office to deal with the effects of the quake, with Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda ordering ministries and agencies concerned to do their best to assess the damage and to assist victims.
Fukuda told reporters Thursday morning that the government is currently trying to grasp the scale of the damage in the affected area.
''We will do what is needed after grasping the situation,'' Fukuda said.
The Iwate prefectural government requested that the Ground Self-Defense Force be dispatched for a disaster relief mission shortly after the quake.
The meteorological agency said the latest quake is not related to the magnitude 7.2 quake that hit Iwate and Miyagi prefectures on June 14, as the focus of the latter was 8 km underground, much shallower than the latest quake.
In the June quake, 13 people died and 10 remain missing.
Following the latest quake, four fires were reported in Iwate and Aomori prefectures.
Tohoku Electric Power Co. said around 8,600 households in Iwate, Aomori, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures experienced temporary power outages but power was resumed in six hours.
There was no damage to any nuclear facilities in the quake-hit areas.
Tohoku Electric said its Onagawa nuclear power plant in Miyagi Prefecture and its Higashidori nuclear plant in Aomori Prefecture are operating normally.
Tokyo Electric Power Co. also said its No. 1 and No. 2 nuclear power plants in Fukushima are operating normally. Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd. said there were no problems at its spent nuclear fuel recycling facilities in the village of Rokkasho, Aomori, and no radioactive leaks.
In Hachinohe, operations at Tohoku Electric's thermal power station were halted manually after a turbine at the plant shook wildly.
Highways in the Tohoku region were temporarily closed.
The quake measured upper 6 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in the town of Hirono in Iwate Prefecture and lower 6 in parts of Aomori Prefecture, including Hachinohe, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.
It was felt in an extensive area from Hokkaido in the north to the Kanto region including Tokyo.
The focus of the quake was about 108 kilometers underground in the northern coastal area of Iwate Prefecture.
As the focus was deep underground, major aftershocks are unlikely, the meteorological agency said, adding that aftershocks measuring 4 on the Japanese scale may occur in the near future.
A Kyodo News tally as of Thursday night showed that 132 people had been injured in Iwate, Aomori, Miyagi, Akita, Hokkaido, Yamagata, Fukushima and Chiba. The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said 28 people were seriously injured.
In Hirono, Iwate Prefecture, where the strongest jolt was felt, a 58-year-old woman broke her leg, the National Police Agency said. A 41-year-old woman in Kitakami in the same prefecture broke a toe after tripping on the stairs.
A 5-year-old boy in Kitakami suffered heavy burns to his back after a pot containing hot water fell on him, the agency said. Many other people were injured by falling glass during the temblor, according to the police.
No major damage has been observed so far by helicopter, the Land,Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry said.
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said 24 homes were partially damaged.
More than 10 schools in Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture, were found to have suffered damage including collapsed ceilings but injuries were limited as the quake took place just past midnight when most people were at home.
East Japan Railway Co. temporarily suspended bullet train services on the Tohoku and Akita Shinkansen lines as damage to overhead wires was found at several points on the Tohoku Shinkansen Line.
A total of 59 bullet train services on the two lines were cancelled Thursday with three others delayed by up to 24 minutes, affecting around 22,000 passengers, JR East said. Services were resumed at around 2 p.m.
JR East suspended conventional train services in Sendai and northward on Thursday and is expecting some cancellations and delays on Friday.
A government team led by National Public Safety Commission Chairman Shinya Izumi, who is also minister in charge of disaster preparedness measures, arrived Thursday morning in Hirono to investigate the damage from the 12:26 a.m. quake and to give instructions.
The government set up a task force at the prime minister's office to deal with the effects of the quake, with Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda ordering ministries and agencies concerned to do their best to assess the damage and to assist victims.
Fukuda told reporters Thursday morning that the government is currently trying to grasp the scale of the damage in the affected area.
''We will do what is needed after grasping the situation,'' Fukuda said.
The Iwate prefectural government requested that the Ground Self-Defense Force be dispatched for a disaster relief mission shortly after the quake.
The meteorological agency said the latest quake is not related to the magnitude 7.2 quake that hit Iwate and Miyagi prefectures on June 14, as the focus of the latter was 8 km underground, much shallower than the latest quake.
In the June quake, 13 people died and 10 remain missing.
Following the latest quake, four fires were reported in Iwate and Aomori prefectures.
Tohoku Electric Power Co. said around 8,600 households in Iwate, Aomori, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures experienced temporary power outages but power was resumed in six hours.
There was no damage to any nuclear facilities in the quake-hit areas.
Tohoku Electric said its Onagawa nuclear power plant in Miyagi Prefecture and its Higashidori nuclear plant in Aomori Prefecture are operating normally.
Tokyo Electric Power Co. also said its No. 1 and No. 2 nuclear power plants in Fukushima are operating normally. Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd. said there were no problems at its spent nuclear fuel recycling facilities in the village of Rokkasho, Aomori, and no radioactive leaks.
In Hachinohe, operations at Tohoku Electric's thermal power station were halted manually after a turbine at the plant shook wildly.
Highways in the Tohoku region were temporarily closed.
