Tokyo: The death toll from the devastating 7.6-magnitude earthquake that struck Japan’s Ishikawa prefecture January 1, increased to 220 Sunday, while 20 people are still unaccounted for, according to authorities.
Strong winds, snow and high waves are expected in northern and eastern Japan from Sunday evening through Tuesday as the winter pressure pattern strengthened, Xinhua news agency reported quoting the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) as saying.
Winds up to 72 kilometres per hour are forecast in the quake-hit Hokuriku region and Niigata Prefecture, with gusts of over 108 kilometres per hour Sunday.
A cold air mass is expected to move in over the Hokuriku region and Niigata Prefecture from Monday through Tuesday, bringing heavy snow to areas on the Sea of Japan coast.
Meanwhile, since the powerful quake struck Ishikawa prefecture, tremors with an intensity of 1 or greater on the country’s seven-tier scale system have been recorded 1,368 times as of 4pm Saturday, the JMA said.
The weather agency said people could face strong tremors with an intensity of 5 or higher for about another month.
IANS