SUZU, Japan (AP) — Rescuers searched the rubble of collapsed homes in western Japan on Wednesday in the hopes of finding survivors of this week’s earthquake, which killed dozens of people.
The magnitude 7.6 temblor Monday, which has had many aftershocks, rocked the Ishikawa prefecture and the surrounding area, toppling thousands of buildings, sparking fires and setting off tsunami warnings. The quake killed at least 73 people, and 15 were listed Wednesday as officially missing.
A man cries as a body of his family member was found from a collapsed house caused by powerful earthquake in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
In Suzu, a coastal city of about 15,000 that was also hit by landslides, a man wept Wednesday as a family member’s body was pulled from a collapsed home. Residents gathered at an evacuation center in the city to rest, warm up and get fed.
Firefighters and members of the Japanese Self Defense Force sifted through toppled homes and other buildings in the hopes of finding anyone still trapped, with the window for survival getting smaller.
In Anamizu, a town about 40 kilometers (25 miles) southwest of Suzu, drivers slowly navigated through streets that were damaged by the earthquake.
And in Waijima, a city of nearly 30,000 people, firefighters on Wednesday walked through the marketplace, which was reduced to gray ash and rubble by a fire sparked by the quake.
This aerial photo shows an area affected by an earthquake in Suzu, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
Smoke rises from the site of a fire occurred following an earthquake in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
Firefighters walk near a fallen building following earthquakes in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
Bystanders look at damage near Noto town in the Noto peninsula facing the Sea of Japan, northwest of Tokyo, Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024, following Monday’s deadly earthquake. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
A partially collapsed road affected by landslide caused by a powerful earthquake is seen near Anamizu Town, Ishikawa Prefecture, Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
In this photo provided by Japanese Ministry of Defense, Japanese Self Defense Force members carry an injured person out of a collapsed house, following strong earthquakes in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan, Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. (Japanese Ministry of Defense via AP)
Firefighters and rescue workers pull a body , in blue sheet, found from a collapsed house caused by powerful earthquake in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
SOS letters formed by folding chairs are seen at a schoolyard after the strong earthquake in Suzu, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan, Jan. 2, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
Rescue workers search a collapsed house caused by powerful earthquake in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
The cars are seen damaged as the city was hit by the earthquakes and tsunami in Suzu, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
Evacuees rest surrounding a stove at a temporary evacuation center in Suzu in the Noto peninsula facing the Sea of Japan, northwest of Tokyo, Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024, following Monday’s deadly earthquake. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Evacuees rest at a temporary evacuation center in Suzu in the Noto peninsula facing the Sea of Japan, northwest of Tokyo, Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024, following Monday’s deadly earthquake. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
An evacuee volunteers to grill pieces of fish at a temporary evacuation center in Suzu in the Noto peninsula facing the Sea of Japan, northwest of Tokyo, Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024, following Monday’s deadly earthquake. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Landslides, caused by earthquakes, is seen in Suzu, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024, following a series of powerful earthquakes hit western Japan.(Kyodo News via AP)
Houses leveled by an earthquake are seen in Kanazawa, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
A man directs a driver moving through a damaged street near Anamizu town in the Noto peninsula facing the Sea of Japan, northwest of Tokyo, Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024, following Monday’s deadly earthquake. A series of powerful earthquakes that hit western Japan damaged thousands of buildings, vehicles and boats. Officials warned that more quakes could lie ahead. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Destroyed houses along the coast are seen in Suzu, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024, following a series of powerful earthquakes hit western Japan. (Kyodo News via AP)
Japanese Self Defense Force members inspect a collapsed house hit by earthquakes in Suzu, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
Firefighters search a fallen building hit by earthquakes in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
A person looks at a damaged house caused by powerful earthquake Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024, near Anamizu town, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
A person walks past a collapsed houses following an earthquake in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
People walk through the damaged marketplace burned by fire after earthquake in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
A woman looks at the burned-out marketplace by a fire following earthquakes in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
People walk past collapsed buildings following an earthquake in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
A firefighter walks through the rubble and wreckage of a burned-out marketplace following earthquake in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
