WAJIMA: As snow and sleet hindered rescue and relief efforts and local media reported that the tragedy had now claimed at least 126 lives, Japan’s prime minister pledged to provide “ceaseless” support to areas hit by the New Year’s Day earthquake.
At the epicenter of the magnitude 7.6 earthquake that left over 30,000 people homeless and disrupted power to tens of thousands of homes and businesses, survivors on the Noto peninsula were still frustrated by the unfavorable weather conditions.
Overnight, the area is expected to get additional significant snowfall or rain, and at least 222 individuals are still listed as missing.
On national broadcaster NHK, footage showed work vehicles excavating houses buried by landslides by sifting through mounds of dirt up to three meters (nearly ten feet) in height.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated on a Sunday NHK program that “rescuing people trapped under the rubble and responding to isolated areas are issues that must be tackled with the highest priority.”
“As we move forward with ceaseless reconstruction and recovery efforts, we must not hesitate in responding due to budget constraints in the disaster-affected areas,” he stated.
On Friday, Kishida announced that his administration would use budget reserves totaling 4.74 billion yen ($32.77 million) to fund restoration work.
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The Noto peninsula is located in Ishikawa Prefecture, whose governor announced a state of emergency on Saturday, referring to the earthquake as “an unprecedented disaster” for the area, according to NHK.
As the fuel supply to the region gradually recovered, a line of automobiles as long as the eye could see had developed to refuel at a gas station in the city of Wajima, on the northern shore of the peninsula.
According to NHK, prefectural governments have dispatched trailers with multiple flushable toilets to evacuation centers situated in Wajima and other affected cities, where water supplies are just now beginning to recommence.
Some of the 700 individuals seeking shelter at a location close to Wajima’s well-known “Asaichi” morning market—which was destroyed by fire following the earthquake—were arranged in a line.
