Rain, snow hamper repairs on homes damaged in Japan's quake

TOKYO • Residents hit by Wednesday's powerful earthquake in Japan's Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures had to contend with rain and snow yesterday as they took steps to cover the quake-damaged roofs of their homes.

The magnitude 7.4 quake that struck off the coast of Fukushima prefecture claimed the lives of three people. Some areas recorded seismic intensity as high as upper 6 on the Japanese scale - 7 is the highest level.

As at 10am local time yesterday, 210 injuries had been reported in Miyagi, Fukushima and 10 other prefectures, and 121 people were staying at evacuation centres in Fukushima prefecture, according to a Yomiuri Shimbun tally.

By yesterday morning, all sections had been reopened on the Joban Expressway, on which several cracks were found.

In the town of Shinchi, Fukushima, a 45-year-old man was using plastic sheets to cover a roof from which tiles had fallen in the earthquake. He said tiles also fell when the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake hit the area, adding: "It's a pain that I have to go through this all over again."

The quake has sparked concerns of further disruptions to a pandemic-hit supply chain for precision components vital to electronics and autos production and in which Japanese manufacturers play a leading role.

Toyota, the world's largest automaker by sales volume, said it will idle the 18 lines at 11 domestic factories, mostly for three days. Murata Manufacturing, the top global supplier of ceramic capacitors used in smartphones and cars, said it restarted production yesterday at two stopped plants.

In the town of Zao in Miyagi, a 64-year-old woman was using masking tape to cover cracks on the quake-damaged windows of her home. Her house's exterior walls and foundations were damaged in a quake last year.

"The repairs had just been finished after a year of waiting," she said. "And now the rain has come, with the house in a condition that's far from perfect. I need a break."

THE JAPAN NEWS/ASIA NEWS NETWORK, REUTERS