Survivors of the Japan Earthquake Suffer...

A week after a major earthquake struck the west coast of Japan, thousands are still suffering from water and electricity outages, with no information yet on when reconstruction plans will begin. At least 168 people have died, and 323 others are missing from the earthquake that hit the country with a magnitude of 7.6 on New Year’s Day. The drop in temperatures below freezing, along with heavy snowfall and rain, has hindered aid delivery, leading to food shortages and a lack of sufficient information for the affected. Landslides have buried homes and blocked roads. Those living in less affected areas, such as the village of Nishiaraya, with a population of 1,000 located on the outskirts of Kanazawa, are braving the snow to obtain clean drinking water. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated on Monday that it is possible to temporarily accommodate 500 people in a sports center in Kanazawa, but he mentioned that more shelter centers are needed. He added that the government is also working on finding hotel rooms for those evacuated. However, adverse weather conditions will further complicate the reconstruction process, with more snow and rain expected in the coming days. The New Year's Day earthquake was the deadliest in Japan since 2016, when 276 people died due to an earthquake that struck the Kumamoto region in the southwest of the country.