The year 2024 started on a devastating note for Japan. First, they suffered a massive 7.6 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tremors, killing nearly 62 people, collapsing buildings, and destroying power and other major infrastructure. And then, the country witnessed a Japan Airlines burst into flames on the runway, after colliding with a smaller Coast Guard plane, killing its 5 crew members. Miraculously, all the 379 passengers onboard the airlines have survived. It is like the survivors of both tragic incidents are compelled to count their blessings as they go ahead into a hopeful future.
Japan’s Massive Earthquake
Several repeated earthquakes in Japan have taken the death toll to 62 by the end of Tuesday, according to NHK World, which cited officials from hard-hit Ishikawa prefecture. Most of the fatalities have been reported in Wajima and Suzu in the Noto Peninsula. While more than 20 are feared to be severely injured due to being trapped under the rubble.
Rescue operations are in full swing and they are actively cleaning and searching inside the rubble, as many are suspected to be stuck under the collapsed building. However, cold winds are posing a challenge to the rescuers and the survivors as well. To top it all, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has warned of heavy rainfall in Noto and has warned the citizens to be fully aware and look for landslides until the evening of Wednesday.
On Tuesday evening, Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reiterated that it is a race against time owing to the expectation that many people could have been buried inside the rubble, waiting to be rescued, and brought out safely. According to sources, Kishida’s government will hold an emergency meeting on Wednesday morning with the emergency task force to discuss relief and rescue operations.
The Mayor of the coastal city of Suzu, Masuhiro Izumiya expressed with a heavy heart that 90% of houses were completely or almost destroyed, adding that the situation is extremely “catastrophic”.
Japan’s Airline Blast
The rescue and relief operation suffered a devastating blow on Tuesday, after a Japan Airlines, connecting the northern city of Sapporo to Tokyo’s Haneda airport, burst into flames on Tuesday afternoon marking it as the country’s worst aviation disaster in history. The Airbus A350 collided with a smaller Coast Guard plane shortly after it landed, triggering the airline to erupt into a fireball. The incident claimed the lives of five Coast Guard crew members, but fortunately, all the passengers on board the airline were miraculously safe.
However, the tragic incident, which would have resulted in a major accident, prompted investigators to scramble to determine how the airline got the clearance to land at Haneda Airport when there was already another plane on the runway. It was nothing less than magic that all 379 passengers and crew members escaped the fire-engulfed aircraft unharmed.
Outside the aircraft, around 115 firefighting units worked tirelessly to control the blaze that initially began at the back of the plane, and eventually engulfed the entire aircraft. All the passengers were evacuated in less than 20 minutes.
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