Hokkaido Quake Death Toll Rises to 39

September 10, 2018

Sapporo- The death toll from Thursday's strong earthquake in the northernmost Japan prefecture of Hokkaido has reached 39, with one person still missing, according to prefectural government sources.

Search operations continued after the 72-hour window when survival chances are high closed in the small hours of Sunday.

The operations involved up to 41,000 personnel from police, fire authorities, the Self-Defense Forces and the Japan Coast Guard.

Of the total victims, 35 lived in the hardest-hit municipality of Atsuma, where many landslides occurred.

As of 10 p.m. (1 p.m. GMT), 2,544 people were taking shelter at evacuation centers.

A total of 50 buildings were partially or totally destroyed. Evacuation orders remained in place in Abira, Biratori, Kitahiroshima, Hidaka and Mukawa.

The blackout across the island prefecture caused by the temblor has ended almost completely.

But power supply remains unstable. With power demand seen rising after Sunday, Hokkaido Electric Power Co. is asking local companies and residents to reduce electricity consumption.

The number of households affected by a water supply cutoff in Hokkaido stood at 8,486 as of 1 p.m., down from the peak of more than 61,700, the health ministry said.

In Sapporo, the water cutoff has nearly ended. At worst, over 15,000 households were without water supply in the capital of the prefecture.

Meanwhile, the water service remained cut off for all of Atsuma's 2,100 households. SDF members and others are distributing water to Atsuma residents. Jiji Press