TOKYO
– A ferocious tsunami spawned by one of the largest earthquakes ever
recorded slammed Japan’s eastern coast Friday, killing hundreds of
people as it swept away boats, cars and homes while widespread fires
burned out of control. Tsunami warnings blanketed the entire Pacific, as
far away as South America, Canada, Alaska and the entire U.S. West
Coast.
Police
said 200 to 300 bodies have been found in the northeastern coastal city
of Sendai. Police said another 88 were confirmed killed and 349 were
missing.
The death toll was likely to continue climbing given the scale of the disaster.
The
magnitude 8.9 offshore quake unleashed a 23-foot (7-meter) tsunami and
was followed by more than 50 aftershocks for hours, many of them of more
than magnitude 6.0.
The
government ordered thousands of residents near a nuclear power plant in
Onahama city to evacuate because the plant’s system was unable to cool
the reactor. The reactor was not leaking radiation but its core remained
hot even after a shutdown. The plant is 170 miles (270 kilometers)
northeast of Tokyo.
Dozens
of cities and villages along a 1,300-mile (2,100-kilometer) stretch of
coastline were shaken by violent tremors that reached as far away as
Tokyo, hundreds of miles (kilometers) from the epicenter.
SOURCE: The Associated Press