Tokyo - Residents in western Japan were cleaning up debris Monday after a
powerful earthquake hit the area around Osaka, the country's
second-largest city of commerce, killing three people and injuring
hundreds while knocking over walls and setting off fires.
The magnitude 6.1 earthquake that struck the area early Monday damaged
buildings and left many homes without water or gas. The quake also
grounded flights in and out of Osaka, and paralyzed traffic and commuter
trains most of the day.
By the evening, bullet trains and some local trains had resumed operation,
with stations swollen with commuters trying to get home, many of them
waiting in long lines. An exodus of commuters who chose to walk home
filled sidewalks and bridges.
Some commuters took refuge at nearby shelters instead of going home. Video
on Japanâs NHK public television showed dozens of men wearing ties and
carrying briefcases sitting on gym mats at a junior high school gymnasium
in Ibaraki city, where some families also gathered.
A 9-year-old girl was killed by a falling concrete wall at her school, and
the two other fatalities were men in their 80s.
......
The quake knocked over walls, broke windows and set off scattered building
fires. It toppled bookcases in homes and scattered goods on shop floors.
It also cracked roads and broke water pipes, leaving homes without water.
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