TOKYO – Residents in northeastern Japan cleaned up junk and debris in shops and homes on Sunday after a strong earthquake triggered a landslide on a highway, damaged buildings and parts of bullet trains and caused power outages for thousands.
The 7.3 magnitude temblor late Saturday shook the earthquake-prone areas of Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures that were hit by a powerful earthquake 10 years ago that triggered a tsunami and meltdown at a nuclear power plant.
More than 140 people suffered mainly minor injuries, many of them from falling objects and cuts while pedaling on broken glass. Three people were confirmed with serious injuries, but there were no reports of deaths, cabinet secretary Katsunobu Kato said.
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Evacuees take shelter in a gym when an earthquake struck the area in Soma, Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan, Sunday, Feb. 14, 2021. (Associated Press)
Tokyo Electric Power Co., the utility that runs the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant affected by the March 2011 disaster, said the water used to cool spent fuel rods near the reactors was leaked from shaking. But there were no radiation leaks or other irregularities, TEPCO said.
The earthquake did not cause a tsunami because the epicenter was deep 55 kilometers (34 miles) under the ocean.
Noriko Kamaya, a spokesman for Japan’s Meteorological Agency, said at a news conference that the earthquake is considered an aftershock of the magnitude 9.1 earthquake in 2011.
A landslide triggered by a strong earthquake hits a circuit in Nihonmatsu city, Fukushima prefecture, in northeastern Japan, Sunday, February 14, 2021. (Associated Press)
Power was restored by early Sunday, although some high-speed trains were still discontinued. East Japan Railway Co. said the north coast high-speed train will be suspended until Monday due to damage to the facility.
TV footage and video shared on social media showed boxes, books, and other items scattered across floors. In the city of Soma in northern Fukushima, a roof of a Buddhist temple collapsed.
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Workers were clearing a major coastal road connecting Tokyo and northern cities where a major landslide occurred. Several other roads were also blocked by rocks.
Collapsed rocks block a road after a massive earthquake struck the city of Soma, Fukushima Prefecture, in northeastern Japan, on Sunday, February 14, 2021. (Associated Press)
Saturday’s powerful chatter less than a month before the 10th anniversary of the 2011 triple disaster was a terrifying reminder of the earlier tragedy for the residents of the region.
“It started with light shaking and then suddenly turned violent,” Yuki Watanabe, a convenience store employee in Fukushima town of Minamisoma, told Asahi newspaper. ‘I was so scared,’ she said, adding that it reminds her of the 2011 earthquake.
This photo shows a damaged entrance to a house in the town of Kori, north of the town of Fukushima, in northeastern Japan, Sunday, February 14, 2021, after an earthquake on Saturday. (Associated Press)
As she ran outside, she heard a thumping noise coming from behind the store as glass bottles slammed off the shelves to the floor.
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Experts warned of more aftershocks. Many residents spent the night in evacuation centers, where tents were set up as part of measures to protect against the coronavirus.
Yasutoshi Nishimura, the minister in charge of economic and fiscal policy, expressed his condolences to those who had suffered damage and injuries.
“The government will continue to do our utmost to respond,” he said.
Defense forces were also mobilized to provide water in some areas.
Yuri Kageyama is on Twitter https://twitter.com/yurikageyama