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JAPAN IS SHAKEN BY A 6.7 MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE

The Japanese island of Hokkaido has been shaken by a 6.7 magnitude earthquake in the early hours of Thursday morning, leaving at least 16 people killed and dozens trapped in their homes after mudslides destroyed their homes. 

Mud from mountain slides in the town of Atsuma have left homes covered or collapsed as rescuers work with shovels, sifting through soil, to rescue survivors who are still trapped. Officials released a statement saying about 30 people are still unaccounted for.

This comes just 1 day after typhoon Jebi caused damage to buildings with high winds and heavy flooding killing 10 people. The island's nuclear power plant has been offline because of an emergency shutdown of the main thermal plant after damage from the earthquake incurred, leaving almost three million households without electricity.

Airports and many roads on the island are closed and trains have stopped because of the power cuts. It had been hoped that power would be restored in hours and some electricity gradually returned but damage to generators at the plant means it may take more than a week before it is back up, said Hiroshige Seko, the Economy, Trade and Industry minister.

 


 



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