Death Toll Feared to Be 1,700 and 9,500 Missing & Unaccounted for in Miyagi’s Minamisanriku

Our hearts and prayers go out to Japan … the Kyodo News is reporting that up to 1700 people might de dead. With the wide spread damage from pictures and videos seen of the 8.9 magnitude earth quake and subsequent tsunami, it is sadly hard to believe that the death toll will not be higher.  

Japan Earthquake: Helicopter aerial view video of giant tsunami waves

Damage caused by Friday’s catastrophic earthquake in Japan expanded Saturday, with the combined number of people who have died or are unaccounted for is feared to top 1,700, while an explosion occurred at the nuclear reactor building of Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant and injured four workers.

The death toll has exceeded 600 so far, a police tally showed, while 200 to 300 bodies were transferred to Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. It was also reported that another 200 bodies were transferred to gymnasiums in Iwanuma and Natori, both in Miyagi, while around 650 people are missing following the 2:46 p.m. quake with a magnitude of 8.8, the strongest ever recorded in Japan.

It is also being reported that 9,500 unaccounted for in the single Japanese port town of Miyagi’s Minamisanriku.

As reported at the Guardian …

• Around 1,700 people are estimated to have been killed, according to local media reports, but that death toll is expected to rise dramatically. The official death toll now stands at 574, with 586 people declared missing and 1,105 injured.
• Around 10,000 people are missing in the town of Minamisanrikucho in Miyagi prefecture, according to Japanese TV reports.
• More than 215,000 people are in emergency shelters and around 50,000 rescuers have been deployed across the country.
• At least 1.4m homes are without water and around three million are without power.