As thousands more bodies were found in Japan's coastal regions, it became apparent yesterday that the tragedy the country suffered in Friday's earthquake and tsunami was of epic proportions.
The final number killed by a 9.0-magnitude offshore quake and a 10-metre wall of water that slammed into the coast appears increasingly likely to be measured in the tens of thousands.
As the country continues to grapple with an unfolding nuclear crisis, a grim tide of corpses is overwhelming crematoria and causing shortages of body bags.
About 2,000 bodies were found washed up yesterday morning on the shore in Miyagi prefecture, an area of north-east Honshu island where the authorities believe 10,000 people may have died.
The confirmed death toll nationwide stands at about 2,800 but is set to rise far higher.
Pictures from coastal towns revealed almost utter devastation, with houses and buildings reduced to rubble, vehicles turned over or ripped from their axles, large ships lying on their sides and in one case left sitting on top of a building.
Such was the almost total annihilation that some parts of Miyagi suffered, correspondents on the scene even made comparisons with Hiroshima.
The town of Minamisanriku, once home to 17,000, is almost completely washed away, with only a few buildings standing.
The Kyodo news agency reported that about 1,000 bodies had been found yesterday on the town's shore, with a similar number discovered in another coastal part of Miyagi.
In Iwate prefecture, the fire department said the city of Rikuzentakata, which used to have 23,000 residents, was "almost completely wiped out", Reuters reported, and there was no word on how many survived after 80 per cent of the city was left underwater.
In Otsuchi town, also in Iwate, 12,000 of the 15,000 residents are unaccounted for.
Tourism officials said as many as 2,500 visitors in tsunami-affected regions had not been traced.
The Japanese prime minister, Naoto Kan, said search teams had rescued 15,000 people so far and nearly half a million have been evacuated from the worst-hit areas.
About 100,000 troops, close to half those serving in the army, have been sent to affected areas, and vast quantities of blankets, water, fuel and food have also been dispatched, according to the Associated Press.
However, there was little comfort for some survivors, with many huddling in shelters without power supplies, food or water as night-time temperatures dropped close to zero. An estimated 24,000 people remain stranded.
Access to food and water has become the priority for many survivors, with 1.4 million households still without water supplies, along with 1.9 million that lack power.
Huge queues formed outside supermarkets in the north-east of Honshu and shoppers were limited in some cases to buying a maximum of five items as supplies ran low.
Some residents waited for several hours to fill up jugs of water, while supplies of fuel were scarce and, in many cases, restricted to those from rescue teams and other essential services needed to carry out official operations.
"People are surviving on little food and water. Things are simply not coming," Hajime Sato, a government official in Iwate prefecture, was quoted as saying.
In a macabre twist, Mr Sato said even body bags and coffins were running out, and assistance from foreign funeral parlours may be needed to cope with demand.
"We have requested funeral homes across the nation to send us many body bags and coffins. But we simply don't have enough," he said.
"We just did not expect such a thing to happen, it is just overwhelming."
Other officials said crematoria were unable to deal with the vast number of bodies requiring cremation.
Yet there were dramatic stories of survival from those lucky enough to escape the raging water that swept away everything in its path.
Miki Otomo told Agence France-Presse that her sister was in a bus when the waves came hurtling from behind.
"The bus driver told everybody to get out of the bus and run," Ms Otomo said. "My sister was able to get away but some people just couldn't run fast enough."
A mother of three teenagers, Ms Otomo escaped by car and is now living in an evacuation centre with about 1,000 others.
"The tsunami wave was coming and I grabbed grandfather and our dog and drove. The wave was right behind me, but I had to keep zigzagging around obstacles and the water to get to safety," she said.
Rescue teams continued to fly in to Japan as scores of countries offered help. Helicopters from the United States navy flew aid into Sendai, a city of one million that suffered acutely in Friday's tsunami. Thick black smoke continued to pour from fires raging in the city.
Plans to ration electricity by introducing power cuts in areas in and around Tokyo were postponed by Mr Kan, who said they may not be required if people are careful not to waste electricity. Officials had proposed the rationing after the country's nuclear crisis forced the shutdown of a string of reactors.
To conserve power, the Tokyo subway and other rail services were running at half capacity, and people were advised to stay away from school and work yesterday.
In one piece of good news, a tsunami alert that sounded yesterday after a 6.2-magnitude aftershock turned out to be a false alarm, although with experts continuing to warn of severe aftershocks, the risk that the sea could wreak further destruction remains.
dbardsley@thenational.ae
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Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
The biog
Hobbies: Writing and running
Favourite sport: beach volleyball
Favourite holiday destinations: Turkey and Puerto Rico
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Walls
Louis Tomlinson
3 out of 5 stars
(Syco Music/Arista Records)
MATCH INFO
Al Jazira 3 (O Abdulrahman 43', Kenno 82', Mabkhout 90 4')
Al Ain 1 (Laba 39')
Red cards: Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain)
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SPEC SHEET
Display: 6.8" edge quad-HD dynamic Amoled 2X, Infinity-O, 3088 x 1440, 500ppi, HDR10 , 120Hz
Processor: 4nm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1/Exynos 2200, 8-core
Memory: 8/12GB RAM
Storage: 128/256/512GB/1TB
Platform: Android 12
Main camera: quad 12MP ultra-wide f/2.2, 108MP wide f/1.8, 10MP telephoto f/4.9, 10MP telephoto 2.4; Space Zoom up to 100x, auto HDR, expert RAW
Video: 8K@24fps, 4K@60fps, full-HD@60fps, HD@30fps, super slo-mo@960fps
Front camera: 40MP f/2.2
Battery: 5000mAh, fast wireless charging 2.0 Wireless PowerShare
Connectivity: 5G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC
I/O: USB-C
SIM: single nano, or nano and SIM, nano and nano, eSIM/nano and nano
Colours: burgundy, green, phantom black, phantom white, graphite, sky blue, red
Price: Dh4,699 for 128GB, Dh5,099 for 256GB, Dh5,499 for 512GB; 1TB unavailable in the UAE
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Strait of Hormuz
Fujairah is a crucial hub for fuel storage and is just outside the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route linking Middle East oil producers to markets in Asia, Europe, North America and beyond.
The strait is 33 km wide at its narrowest point, but the shipping lane is just three km wide in either direction. Almost a fifth of oil consumed across the world passes through the strait.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the strait, a move that would risk inviting geopolitical and economic turmoil.
Last month, Iran issued a new warning that it would block the strait, if it was prevented from using the waterway following a US decision to end exemptions from sanctions for major Iranian oil importers.
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Company%20profile
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Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
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Ballon d’Or shortlists
Men
Sadio Mane (Senegal/Liverpool), Sergio Aguero (Aregentina/Manchester City), Frenkie de Jong (Netherlans/Barcelona), Hugo Lloris (France/Tottenham), Dusan Tadic (Serbia/Ajax), Kylian Mbappe (France/PSG), Trent Alexander-Arnold (England/Liverpool), Donny van de Beek (Netherlands/Ajax), Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon/Arsenal), Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Germany/Barcelona), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Juventus), Alisson (Brazil/Liverpool), Matthijs de Ligt (Netherlands/Juventus), Karim Benzema (France/Real Madrid), Georginio Wijnaldum (Netherlands/Liverpool), Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands/Liverpool), Bernardo Silva (Portugal/Manchester City), Son Heung-min (South Korea/Tottenham), Robert Lewandowski (Poland/Bayern Munich), Roberto Firmino (Brazil/Liverpool), Lionel Messi (Argentina/Barcelona), Riyad Mahrez (Algeria/Manchester City), Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium/Manchester City), Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal/Napoli), Antoine Griezmann (France/Barcelona), Mohamed Salah (Egypt/Liverpool), Eden Hazard (BEL/Real Madrid), Marquinhos (Brazil/Paris-SG), Raheem Sterling (Eengland/Manchester City), Joao Félix(Portugal/Atletico Madrid)
Women
Sam Kerr (Austria/Chelsea), Ellen White (England/Manchester City), Nilla Fischer (Sweden/Linkopings), Amandine Henry (France/Lyon), Lucy Bronze(England/Lyon), Alex Morgan (USA/Orlando Pride), Vivianne Miedema (Netherlands/Arsenal), Dzsenifer Marozsan (Germany/Lyon), Pernille Harder (Denmark/Wolfsburg), Sarah Bouhaddi (France/Lyon), Megan Rapinoe (USA/Reign FC), Lieke Martens (Netherlands/Barcelona), Sari van Veenendal (Netherlands/Atletico Madrid), Wendie Renard (France/Lyon), Rose Lavelle(USA/Washington Spirit), Marta (Brazil/Orlando Pride), Ada Hegerberg (Norway/Lyon), Kosovare Asllani (Sweden/CD Tacon), Sofia Jakobsson (Sweden/CD Tacon), Tobin Heath (USA/Portland Thorns)
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
Profile of Bitex UAE
Date of launch: November 2018
Founder: Monark Modi
Based: Business Bay, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: Eight employees
Investors: Self-funded to date with $1m of personal savings
