Kure, Japan — Aftershocks rattled southwestern Japan on Sunday as residents began picking up the pieces following a powerful earthquake that killed two people and damaged the region's infrastructure.
The magnitude-6.4 temblor Saturday afternoon struck southwestern Japan, collapsing buildings, snapping power lines and severing water mains. The quake shook windows as far away as South Korea.
Aftershocks continued to jolt the region sporadically Sunday, including a magnitude-4.7 tremor Sunday night that was strong enough to momentarily disrupt bullet train service. No new damage was reported, however, and local utility companies continued work restoring electricity and water.
Hiroshima, 430 miles southwest of Tokyo, was the hardest hit of seven southwestern states that recorded heavy seismic activity. Twenty-one people remained hospitalized in Hiroshima state, police said.
Sunday night, the quake's toll stood at two killed and 174 injured. A total of 5,070 buildings in southwestern Japan sustained some damage, the Home Affairs Ministry in Tokyo said.
In Kure, a town of old-fashioned wooden houses and narrow winding streets about 12 miles south of Hiroshima, residents cleared away rubble to let cars pass and lined up outside relief centers for water and vinyl sheets to patch broken roofs. About 10,000 homes remained without water Sunday.
"I've never been so scared in my life," said Kure resident Hatsue Michinaka, 84, said as she swept up debris from a collapsed wall.
Japan is one of the world's most earthquake-prone countries. Saturday's quake was centered off the coast of Japan and relatively deep under the sea, some 40 miles below ground, which may have softened its impact.
No comments
Commenting is turned off for this story.