Quake-hit Japan city adjusts to lack of water supply
Over 230 people died in the magnitude 7.6 quake that rocked Japan on New Year's Day and left 44,000 homes fully or partially destroyed and a total of 40,000 with no running water, according to data from Ishikawa Prefecture. More than 13,000 survivors are living in evacuation centers, authorities say, who fear a public health crisis lies ahead should survivors continue to spend weeks in subpar living conditions. - REUTERS
Transcript
00:00 When Chisa Terashita turns her kitchen tap on, nothing happens.
00:05 It's been like that since the New Year's Day earthquake wrecked her home in the coastal city of Suzu,
00:10 on Japan's isolated Notto Peninsula.
00:13 We're getting used to this life. It's becoming kind of normal.
00:19 So one way or another we'll get through it. We have no choice but to get through it.
00:25 A month on from the 7.6 magnitude earthquake that struck Japan's west coast,
00:30 tens of thousands of homes remain without running water,
00:33 leaving survivors battling freezing and unsanitary conditions.
00:38 Some areas of the Notto Peninsula may not have water restored for another two months,
00:43 the government of Ishikawa Prefecture said.
00:45 It adds to risks for those living in cramped evacuation centres,
00:49 where authorities say respiratory infections and gastroenteritis have been detected.
00:55 Yoshio Binsaki was among residents collecting 20 litre tanks of water to take home.
01:00 We mainly use the water for the toilet.
01:05 Because there's no water at home, we can't wash clothes or bathe.
01:09 The quake became Japan's deadliest in eight years, claiming more than 230 lives.
01:16 It also left 44,000 homes fully or partially destroyed.
01:20 While 40,000 have no running water,
01:22 more than 13,000 residents are living in evacuation centres,
01:26 according to the Ishikawa government.
01:28 Bitter cold is also posing a challenge,
01:31 especially for scores of residents who are sleeping in their cars after their homes were wrecked.
01:36 Over 900 deaths from the devastating Kobe earthquake of 1995 happened after the quake,
01:44 due in part to the spread of flu and lack of medical care at evacuation centres,
01:49 according to public health experts.
01:51 [BLANK_AUDIO]