Fears grow for earthquake survivors in Japan as death toll increases

Rescuers continued to search for survivors of a powerful earthquake on the Japanese island of Hokkaido, while the death toll had risen to 16.

Dozens of people are still missing and many are feared to be buried under the rubble after landslides caused by the earthquake.

Some 1.6 million inhabitants of Hokkaido remain without electricity.

The earthquake is the second disaster to hit Japan this week after a deadly typhoon hit the country's west coast.

The earthquake hit Thursday morning and thousands of people spent the night in evacuation centers.

"I thought I would die"

The village of Atsuma was one of the most affected, where roads and houses collapsed after huge landslides.

"We heard that there were still people trapped under the mud, so we worked around the clock but it was difficult to save them," NHK public radio told a local aid worker. ; Atsuma.

One resident said: "It was horrible.The earth slid all the way down and I thought I would die.I thought my house was going to collapse."

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Prime Minister Shinzo Abe confirmed that 16 people had been killed, many injured and 26 were still missing.

"Please, give sympathy to people who have spent a dark night in fear and do everything you can to restore electricity as quickly as possible," he explained. his ministers at a cabinet meeting Friday.

Authorities said it took at least a week to restore power lines in the sparsely populated countryside.

With the bad weather expected in the coming days, officials warn people to be cautious and to prepare for aftershocks.

Transport to resume

The main airport of the island resumed its flights on Friday and train services should also restart before the weekend.

The earthquake also affected several manufacturers on the island. Toyota's factory operations will be suspended until power is restored, the automaker said.

A friendly match between Japan and Chile, scheduled for Friday, has been canceled.

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The earthquake follows a deadly typhoon that has hit western Japan in recent days.

Jebi, the most powerful typhoon to hit the country in 25 years, killed at least 10 people and caused considerable damage and disruption.

Japan is one of the most seismically active countries in the world and accounts for about 20% of earthquakes in the world, with a magnitude of 6.0 or higher.

In June, a deadly jolt hit the Osaka region, killing five people and injuring more than 300 people.