Kumamoto, Japan – People are still trapped in buildings after a 6.2 earthquake struck Japan on Thursday night near Kumamoto city. According to the Meteorological Agency, no tsunami warnings were issued after the quake, although the damages have been reported to include collapsed houses.
Local authorities claim that over 20 houses were weakened by the powerful earthquake and therefore collapsed, enclosing people under debris. There have been many people treated counting as much as 45, while at least 5 have been treated for serious injuries, said the Japanese Red Cross Kumamoto Hospital.
Given that the event shook the ground at night, the damage report for Japan’s town of Mashiki in Kumamoto Prefecture still remains undefined, said local authorities at the site. It’s worth noticing that the town of Mashiki is about 9 miles east of Kumamoto city. Yet it was the location where the quake had most of the impact, according to the meteorological agency.
This could explain why so many houses collapsed due to the shaking of the ground, to an extent rarely seen in Japan. Nevertheless, police officials have been responding to calls for people missing under the debris of collapsed homes as well as several fires across the town of Mashiki. Following the original 6.2 quake, authorities and the Meteorological Agency confirmed several other replicas happened through the night.
Thanks to surveillance equipment placed in several buildings, the quake can be detailed not only by questioning witnesses of the event. Public health officials have confirmed over 100 patients currently admitted to three hospitals in Kumamoto city. The original quake struck Kumamoto city around 9:30 pm while the replicas went on up to 10 pm.
Damage assessment following the 6.2 quake
Still, the damages have been quickly escalating as rescue teams continue to search for people trapped under houses. In addition, the water supplies for many regions have been shut down as a result of debris falling down on water pipes. Witnesses from the quake in Mashiki claim their houses shook sideways in a violent manner after the undisputable sound of the earthquake.
Takahiko Morita, a resident of the town of Mashiki said her furniture and bookshelves didn’t stay standing for more than seconds as her house shook fiercely. Fortunately enough for Japan, the quake struck far away from its nuclear facilities, said Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga.
In a news conference held following the earthquake near Kumamoto city, Suga said the total damage was still being assessed; yet the nuclear plant in Sendai was running without setbacks. The earthquake’s epicenter was traced to 74 miles northeast of Japan’s only nuclear plant located in Sendai.
Source: CNN