التصنيف: جديد

The number of people killed after a 7.6-magnitude earthquake hit Japan has risen to at least 30.

A series of quakes struck Ishikawa prefecture on Monday afternoon, triggering a now-cancelled tsunami alert that caused some to flee to higher ground.

Buildings collapsed, cracks opened in roads and fires broke out – with Japan‘s prime minister saying it is now a race to help survivors.

Japan earthquake latest – get live updates

“Saving lives is our priority and we are fighting a battle against time. It is critical that people trapped in homes get rescued immediately,” said Fumio Kishida.

He said there was “large-scale damage” and that it’s especially hard to reach the northern tip of Ishikawa’s Noto peninsula, due to damaged roads.

A thousand soldiers have been deployed to the quake area – on Japan’s west coast – alongside police and firefighters, Mr Kishida added.

Officials confirmed on Tuesday that 30 people had died just in the city of Wajima, near the epicentre, where smoke and embers were still filling the sky on Tuesday.

Many rail services, ferries and flights into the area have also been suspended.

Noto airport has shut due to damage to the runway, terminal and access roads, with 500 people stranded inside cars in its car park.

More than 140 tremors have been recorded since the quake first hit, according to Japan’s meteorological agency – which has warned more strong shocks could follow.

On Monday night, around 100,000 people were also evacuated from the quake zone and spent the night in school halls and gyms.

Japanese people are well-drilled on what to do in an earthquake and most of the country’s modern buildings are built with some kind of quake resistance.

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A 2011 quake and tsunami in Japan led to the Fukushima nuclear accident – the second-worst in history.

However, the country’s nuclear authority said no problems had been detected so far.

President Biden and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak are among those who have offered Japan help if needed.

My Biden said the countries shared a “deep bond of friendship”, adding: “Our thoughts are with the Japanese people during this difficult time.”

Rishi Sunak called Japan’s prime minister a “great friend of the UK” and said Britain was “ready to support Japan”.

My phone pings late at night. It’s a message from Gustavo Aleman, our producer in Venezuela.    

“Look who made it to America!” the message says, alongside a picture of a family standing in front of a ‘Welcome to the United States of America’ sign.

It is the Zambrano family from Venezuela.

Our team first met them in the Darien Gap in November 2022, while we were filming a story about the notorious jungle trek from Colombia to Panama.

We filmed as they criss-crossed rivers, waded through deep pools of water and hiked up steep hills made entirely of thick mud and rock.

Michael Zambrano was carrying his then two-year-old son Lucien in a baby carrier on his chest, while his four-year-old son Jordan clung to his hand.

His wife Mariangela was seven months pregnant.

They had left Venezuela, travelled to Chile – tried to make a life there but couldn’t – so made their way through Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and then to Colombia, where they joined the trail – hoping to ultimately reach the US.

It took them five days to get through the jungle and into Panama.

Once they reached Panama they took a breather for a few days, before continuing north through Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, and then Mexico.

In Mexico City in January, Mariangela gave birth to a girl they named Ana, but because they did not have proper papers, they had to wait to get a birth certificate for their third child.

Once they received it, they applied for asylum in the US, and after nearly three months of waiting they got approval from US Customs and Border Protection to enter the US legally through Texas.

In the end it was a six month journey for the Zambrano family, mostly on foot, carrying everything they had in one rucksack – and with just $300 (£235) to their name.

They are now settling in to life in New York City.

“I feel everything was worth it, it was worth crossing 11 countries and four deserts with no money, just with the help of strangers, and with God’s help,” Michael told producer Gustavo Aleman in New York.

The family has been given a room at a shelter for migrants, as well as food and supplies for their children.

Eldest son Jordan has been enrolled in public school where, Michael proudly notes, he is learning English.

“The first day we took him to school we were so proud, after all we have been through,” he said while walking home from school with Jordan on his shoulders.

“This happiness will stay with me all my life.”

Michael is waiting for his work permit to arrive, but in the meantime he earns a little money busking on the streets in the evenings – he is a singer.

He said: “I perform on the streets on the corner of a restaurant, I sing mostly Colombian music, and people are very supportive.”

He also creates content for his TikTok account, where he has more than 36,000 followers.

The Darien Gap is seen as a gateway to America for migrants from all over the world and more than 500,000 passed through in 2023, according to latest figures available.

When we said goodbye to Michael and his family – up to their knees in water and mud – just over a year ago, we wished them luck.

However, we pointed out that rules at the US border had changed and their asylum claim couldn’t be processed at the crossing point.

Michael smiled and shook our hands.

“We will get through. The American people are nice, and they will hear our story and they will let us in. God will help them and help us,” he said, wading off into the distance with his family in tow.

They made it.

An incredible journey, but one that often doesn’t end so well for thousands of others.