Jan 01 (NHK) - Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi Yoshimasa said it has been confirmed that many buildings collapsed after Monday's magnitude 7.6 earthquake.
He made the statement at a second emergency news conference. He said the government will continue to assess the full extent of the damage from the quake that struck central Japan's Ishikawa Prefecture, along the Japan Sea coast.
Hayashi said he has received information that there have been six reports of people trapped under collapsed buildings or due to other circumstances resulting from the quake.
He asked people to pay close attention to emergency information and take action to protect themselves. Hayashi called on people in areas where tsunami warnings have been issued to immediately evacuate to higher ground or safe places.
He said some parts of five expressways have been closed, and some Joetsu Shinkansen and some sections of Hokuriku Shinkansen bullet trains have been suspended. He said he has heard that Noto Airport is closed to traffic.
He also said power is out at 33,000 households, and mobile phone communication services have been disrupted in Ishikawa and Niigata prefectures.
Hayashi said a fire broke out at a transformer at a Shika nuclear power plant, but it has been extinguished and had no impact on the plant. He said no abnormalities have been confirmed at any nuclear facilities.
