With power to most facilities restored and its sprinkler-flooded floors now clean and dry, New Chitose Airport, Hokkaido's main gateway, is slowly getting back to normal after Thursday's level 7 earthquake.
Search and rescue missions have officially ended in the rural prefecture, leaving the death toll from the magnitude 6.7 temblor at 41, central and local government officials said.
The shutdown of the Tomato-Atsuma power plant, Hokkaido's largest thermal power station, is meanwhile continuing to create serious electricity shortages throughout the prefecture. The situation is forcing companies and households to conserve power to prevent blackouts from returning.