At least 2 dead, dozens injured after quake shakes N. Japan

Source: Agencies  |   2008-6-14  |     ONLINE EDITION

A POWERFUL 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck a rural area of northern Japan today, killing at least two people, triggering landslides and reportedly knocking down a bridge. At least 64 people were injured, several seriously.

Operators were inspecting nuclear power plants in the area, but there were no immediate reports of damage, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura. Electricity had been cut to about 29,000 households in the quake zone, he said.

There was no danger of tsunami. Several aftershocks, including one with a magnitude of 5.6, struck the area in the hours after the initial temblor.

The 8:43 a.m. (2343 GMT Friday) quake was centered in the northern prefecture (state) of Iwate about 250 miles (400 kilometers) north of Tokyo, and was located about 6.2 miles (10 kilometers) underground. It was felt as far away as the capital.

One of the deaths was a man who ran out of a building in fear and was hit by a passing truck, and the other confirmed death was a man who was buried in a landslide while he was fishing, Machimura said.

"It shook so violently that I couldn't stand still. I had to lean on the wall," said Masanori Oikawa, an Oshu city official who was at home near the epicenter when the quake struck. "When I rushed to the office, cabinets had been thrown onto the floor and things on the desks were scattered all over the place."

The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said at least 64 people were injured, including two in critical condition. One of them was a dam worker in Iwate who was hit by falling rocks.

Footage shot from media helicopters showed numerous landslides on rural roads running along knots of mountains separated by long stretches of rice fields. The footage aired on NHK also showed what appeared to be a pedestrian stairway near a gorge had that collapsed.