The British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak and his counterpart from Canada, Justin Trudeau have reacted to the earthquake that struck in Japan which was reported to have killed eight people on Monday, 1st of January, 2024.
In a separate statement, the British Prime Minister said his thoughts are with all those affected by the earthquakes in Japan which he said caused such terrible damage.
Consoling the Japanese Government, Sunak who grieved over the unfortunate incident said the Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is a great friend of the United Kingdom and his country stand ready to support Japan, promised to monitoring developments closely.
UK Prime Minister advised the British nationals in the affected areas to follow the advisory of the Japanese authorities.
On his social media platforms, Canada’s Prime Minister said, “My thoughts are with the people of Japan following devastating earthquake. To Japan, our partner and friend: Canada is standing with you, ready to extend a helping hand”.
It was reported that at least eight people died and many were left injured after 21 earthquakes, strongest being of magnitude 7.6, struck western Japan leading to top- level tsunami alert in the country on New Year’s day.
The report stated further that the earthquake struck at 4:10 pm local time at a depth of 10 kilometres, six miles around 42 kilometres, 26 miles northeast of Anamizu in Ishikawa.
This was disclosed by the United States Geological Survey on its X handle (Formerly Twitter) on Monday, January 1 with the caption, “Notable quake, preliminary info: M 7.5 – 42 km NE of Anamizu, Japan.”
Meanwhile, Japan’s meteorological agency has lifted all tsunami advisories along the Sea of Japan, NHK added. The tremors have brought cracks in roads, knocked power from thousands of households and scared residents to deaths.
According to Reuters, thousands of army personnel, firefighters and police officers have been dispatched to the worst-hit area in the relatively remote Noto peninsula.
Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida held an emergency disaster meeting on Tuesday and said: “The search and rescue of those impacted by the quake is a battle against time.”
He said it was getting difficult for rescuers to reach the northern tip of the Noto peninsula due to wrecked roads. As per Reuters, the Japanese PM said that helicopter surveys had discovered many fires and widespread damage to buildings and infrastructure.
