Sep 10 (NHK) - The death toll from Thursday's powerful earthquake has risen to 42. In addition to the fatalities, the Japanese government says more than 650 people were injured.
The magnitude-6.7 quake struck early Thursday morning. The epicenter was near the town of Atsuma where many of the fatalities were caused by massive landslides.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Sunday visited the town to offer his condolences. He was briefed by local officials on the damage from the quake.
Abe earlier visited Hokkaido's largest city, Sapporo. He inspected the city's Kiyota Ward where ground liquefaction caused houses to tilt and roads to cave in.
Authorities in Hokkaido say that as of Sunday evening, there were about 2,600 people in evacuation shelters. The number of destroyed buildings is at least 70.
Public transport is gradually being restored. Some inter-city express trains went into service early Sunday morning.
The distribution of goods is expected to improve as freight train services also resumed on Sunday.
But residents may have to cope with an unstable power supply. Hokkaido Electric Power Company was forced to shut down the largest thermal power plant in the prefecture after the quake, and says restarting it could take more than a week.
The Agency for Natural Resources and Energy is calling on households and companies to conserve power by turning off lights and unplugging household appliances when not in use.
