Magnitude 6.0 earthquake hits Japan again

UAn earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Ritcher scale shook Japan again this Tuesday. The shock was felt on the west coast of the country, the same area that was affected last week by an earthquake with significant damage.

The earthquake was felt at 5:59 p.m. [8h59 em Portugal Continental]with the epicenter at a depth of 10 kilometers on the coast near Niigata, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

So far, no tsunami alert has been activated.

The tremor reached magnitude 6.0 on the Ritcher scale and the epicenter was detected at a point close to the magnitude 7.6 earthquake on January 1, which caused at least 202 deaths and 102 missing.

It is the deadliest natural disaster in Japan since the floods in the west of the country in 2018, which killed more than 220 people.

It is also the deadliest earthquake in the archipelago since those that hit the island of Kyushu (southwest) in 2016, causing almost 300 deaths.

The January 1 earthquake that hit the Noto peninsula, in the far north of Ishikawa prefecture, was followed by more than 1,200 tremors, causing the collapse of many buildings, fires and damage to many infrastructures.

More than a week after the catastrophe, more than 3,000 inhabitants of the peninsula remained isolated while awaiting help, with delays caused by rain and snow and the persistent blockage of roads due to landslides.

More than 28,000 people were still in around 400 reception centers, some of which were overcrowded and lacking food and heating.

Around 60,000 homes today remained without access to running water and almost 15,000 without electricity.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida today called on ministers to quickly resolve the problem of communities still isolated on the Noto peninsula and to continue “tenaciously the rescue operations”.

The Government is also trying to transfer the displaced to centers outside the disaster areas, where the supply of basic necessities is not a problem.

[Notícia atualizada às 11h01]