Watch | Japan sees death, damage at the start of 2024 after massive earthquake, tsunami

At least 3o people have been killed in Japan after a massive earthquake hit the country’s western coast on Monday, triggering tsunami waves and destroying hundreds of homes, damaging stretches of highways and causing suspension of bullet trains and flights.

The 7.6 magnitude earthquake hit central Japan in the middle of the afternoon on New Year’s Day, prompting tsunami alerts that forced thousands to evacuate their homes and flee to higher ground. As waves as high as 3.3 feet (1 metre) swept away cars and infrastructure of the island nation, several were left homeless, displaced, and awaiting rescue among the debris.

Houses fallen by an earthquake are seen in Kanazawa, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan, Jan. 2, 2024. (AP/PTI)

A video shared by the news agency Reuters showed an eye-witness account of the earthquake from inside a supermarket in Honshu Island’s Ishikawa Prefecture. The almost 40-second video shows buyers grabbing each other and sitting down on the floor as a precaution as the strong shockwaves knocked products off the shelves. The short clip also showed the violently shaking building as many buyers attempted to leave the premises of the store, while others stood in shock and fear. A woman was seen trying to calm the customers.

An eyewitness captured the moment a massive earthquake struck Japan https://t.co/lenuYo5TYm pic.twitter.com/wmTnXL7EVt

— Reuters (@Reuters) January 1, 2024

Another eyewitness footage shared by Reuters showed the extent of infrastructural damage caused by the intense tremors. The first half of the 1-minute video showed a house in Ishikawa’s Uchinda town in complete rubble, while the road in front sustained multiple large cracks. The second half of the video showed large sections of a road ripped apart from the ground in the aftermath of the quake, as well as bent and displaced utility poles.

An eyewitness footage showed a house reduced to rubble in Ishikawa, and damage to roads and utility poles in Uchinada town after a powerful earthquake struck central Japan https://t.co/WZ4otQDGb4 pic.twitter.com/m96WNJF1ln

— Reuters (@Reuters) January 1, 2024

A vehicle falls on a collapsed road after an earthquake in Anamizumachi, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan, Jan. 2, 2024. (AP/PTI)

A video shared by the Associated Press depicted the experience of what looked like a tourist group. The group were hit by the tremors while on the road. The 40-second clip captured cars shaking excessively while parked at a petrol pump in Myoko, northern Japan. One of the passengers in the car can be seen looking out in disbelief.

Vehicles were seen shaking with people inside after a series of strong quakes shook the western coast of Japan on Monday, prompting tsunami alerts.

The Japan Meterological Agency reported quakes shortly after 4 p.m., one of them with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6. pic.twitter.com/CloB2d7NDk

— The Associated Press (@AP) January 1, 2024

German news agency Deutsche Welle shared an eyewitness footage of the tremors hitting Kanazawa area which showed the panic-stricken crowd and infrastructural damage left in the wake of the quake. The clip showed a mall with a damaged ceiling and water leaking out to its premises. Tiles were seen torn out of the flooring as multiple security personnel helped panic-stricken shoppers evacuate the building.

Cell phone cameras captured the moment a 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck Japan, triggering a tsunami warning for the coastal areas of Ishikawa, Niigata and Toyama. pic.twitter.com/1GVrqdfZT5

— DW News (@dwnews) January 2, 2024

This aerial photo shows overturned fishing ships at a port following earthquake in Suzu, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan, Jan. 2, 2024. (AP/PTI)

A weather watch handle on X (formerly Twitter) shared a video which showed the first tsunami waves that hit the coast following the quake. The footage from Joetsu on Japan’s west coast 60 miles away from the epicentre showed the Seiki River being overrun by waves. The flow of water risked raising the water level of the river in Niigata Prefecture.

Here was the moment when one of the tsunami waves came along the Seki river, near Jōetsu, Japan (west coast) almost 60 mile away from the epicenter of this morning’s violent 7.5M earthquake.

There are presently no tsunami warnings!

pic.twitter.com/mymru2b9xN

— Live Storm Chasers (@LiveStormChaser) January 1, 2024

Another video shared by the same handle on X shows a massive fire engulfing a pocket of Japan’s Wajima city in the Ishikawa Prefecture after the earthquake. The five-minute clip showed high flames running wild in what looks like a residential area. Intense smoke and embers from the fire could also be seen dispersing into the night.

Horrible fire after a 7.5M Earthquake hit western Japan earlier – this is Wajima, Japan. pic.twitter.com/ii0MDan4Tg

— Live Storm Chasers (@LiveStormChaser) January 1, 2024

A view of a collapsed road and houses because of an earthquake in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan, January 1, 2024. (Reuters)

CBS News shared a combined video of multiple clips from the affected areas. The first half of the footage shows Suzu’s coastline as the earthquake hit. The second footage of an unnamed area showed several structures collapsing in a residential neighbourhood, engulfing different parts of the region in dust and dirt. The third half of the video showed the digital signboards and platform number signs shaking intensely at a metro station while passengers look on.

A powerful 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck Japan’s west coast near Ishikawa, causing dozens of building to collapse. A tsunami warning has been issued, urging coastal residents in the region to evacuate. pic.twitter.com/xY1la5ikva

— CBS News (@CBSNews) January 1, 2024

According to Reuters reports, multiple rescue operations have been launched in the wake of the calamity. However, rescue personnel have been struggling to reach isolated regions of the country due to damaged or blocked roads, the agency reported on Tuesday. In the Noto peninsula of the Ishikawa Prefecture, the worst-hit region, thousands of military personnel, firefighters, and police officers have been dispatched for rescue services.

People take shelter at a prefectural government office following an earthquake in Kanazawa, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan, Jan. 1, 2024. (AP Photo)

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