Beijing, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- The number of victims of the earthquake on the Noto Peninsula in Japan rose to 94 on the afternoon of January 5, and 222 people are still missing, many of whom are elderly. The golden 72 hours of post-disaster relief have passed, and the weekend will usher in snowfall, and there is little hope for the survival of those trapped under the rubble.
Road disruptions continue to be the biggest challenge in the delivery of relief supplies. More than 33,000 evacuees are in urgent need of assistance.
A citizen inspects the ruins of the "Wajima Morning Market" in Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, on January 4. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhang Xiaoyu
According to the list of missing persons released by the Ishikawa Prefectural Government, the 222 people are mainly from Wajima City and Zhuzhou City, the hardest-hit areas, and most of them are elderly. Local residents said that many of the missing people who were crushed under their houses were likely elderly people.
Ishikawa Prefecture Governor Chihiro said that as of around 4 pm on the 4th, the golden 72 hours had passed, and "the chances of survival for those survivors who need rescue are believed to have dropped significantly."
Rescuers rescued two elderly women trapped in the rubble in Wajima City later that day, and social media was cheering. However, time is ticking. The weather forecast is that there will be snow in the affected area over the weekend, and the search for survivors is even more urgent.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida decided on the 4th to increase the number of self-defense forces supporting the disaster area to 4,600. The Maritime Self-Defense Force uses hovercraft to bring heavy equipment needed to clear wrecks, such as bulldozers, to the shore. According to Chi Hao, the earthquake caused the seabed to lift and deform, making it impossible for large ships to dock in some ports on the Noto Peninsula.
Some SDF members entered the disaster area and joined the search and rescue team, which was mainly led by firefighters and police in the first days after the disaster. In Wajima City, AFP reporters saw a group of self-defense forces enter through the broken windows of a collapsed house to search for a missing resident. A member of the Self-Defense Forces shouted, "Is there anyone inside?"
On the fourth day of the earthquake, the full picture of the damage was still unclear. Kyodo News reported on the 5th that more than 700 people in villages in Ishikawa Prefecture are still isolated and helpless. Fourteen areas in Wajima City are also isolated islands, and it is impossible to count the number of people affected. The city government has received more than 40 reports of "people buried", and the damage may be further expanded.
According to the Sankei Shimbun, in an antique old street in Baoli Town, Zhuzhou City, all the buildings along the street collapsed, and it was as silent as if time had stopped. According to some residents, the local fire brigade and support teams from other places are mainly searching and rescuing in the city center, and have not yet come to the town of Takarida, which is far away from the city.
The report said that in Anamizu Town, Ishikawa Prefecture, the search and rescue started earlier, but the progress was slow. A rescue team came to the rescue of a collapsed house, but was told by nearby residents that the people inside had been rescued, reflecting the confusion of information about the rescue operation.
This is the ruins of the "Wajima Morning Market" photographed on January 4 in Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhang Xiaoyu
According to the Associated Press and other media, although Japan is known for its reliable post-disaster relief, since the earthquake, Ishikawa Prefecture's evacuation sites are running out of necessary supplies such as water, food, and blankets, and there is no access to the Internet, there is a shortage of medicines, and the sanitary conditions such as toilets and epidemic prevention are worrying.
Kyodo News said that as of the 4th, about 30,000 homes in Ishikawa Prefecture were still without electricity, and about 80,000 households in 13 municipalities were without water. Shigeru Sakaguchi, the mayor of Wajima, said that the city's 11,000 evacuees had received only 3,000 meals and 5,000 bottles of water as of the 3rd.
At an evacuation site in Wajima City, Kyoko Kinoshita, 62, and more than 200 people lined up to receive food. "There was no running water, and we couldn't wash our hands after going to the toilet," she told Reuters. ”
About 300 evacuees are waiting for help at a temporary shelter in a primary school in Zhuzhou City.
A woman in her 30s who took refuge with her three children told the Asahi Shimbun reporter: "Even if I give my own food to my children, it will not be enough. I haven't eaten almost anything for the past two days. ”
Hiroo Obata showed an Associated Press reporter how small the rice balls were: "We only got two rice balls." The old man and his wife took refuge together, receiving only half a cup of water in a disposable paper cup, and "drank it all in one gulp."
Obata said that he could not return to the destroyed house and had to sleep with other evacuees for now, "talking together and trying to encourage each other." He hopes that assistance is on the way.
However, many roads leading to the affected areas were either blocked by landslides or cracks of various sizes appeared in the earthquake, making it difficult for trucks carrying aid to pass. Ishikawa prefectural officials said that as of the 4th, there were still about 100 blockages on roads throughout the county.
Shigeru Sakaguchi, the mayor of Wajima, said, "The first thing is the road. Road disruptions have not only hampered the delivery of aid, but also affected the restoration of electricity, water, mobile phone signals and other life-saving infrastructure. ”
A medical worker who has been involved in many disaster relief efforts, Toshiki Koli, told Reuters: "Compared to other earthquakes, the road conditions in Wajima City are very bad. I feel that the aid arrives much later than usual. He believes that evacuees will have to stay in difficult shelter conditions for a longer period of time.
In Nanao City, traffic police officers told private car drivers that the main road leading to Wajima City would give priority to disaster relief vehicles. Petrol stations limit the amount of refueling for private cars. Many people are worried about aftershocks and choose to spend the night in their cars.
Among those killed and lost in the earthquake are those who came to Ishikawa Prefecture from other places to celebrate the New Year with their loved ones.
Standing in front of the rubble, Hiroyuki Hamatani, 53, told AFP that when the earthquake struck, everyone was celebrating the New Year and relatives had come. "The house hasn't collapsed, but it's still far from being able to live again...... I don't have any place in my head to think about the future. (Hu Ruoyu)
Source: Xinhuanet