A 7.6 magnitude earthquake, which at its epicenter was ranked shindo 7 — the highest level on Japan’s intensity scale — struck Ishikawa Prefecture’s Noto Peninsula on Monday afternoon as the nation was marking New Year’s Day, a time when families traditionally gather at home and most of the country takes a break from work and school.
On Tuesday, rescue personnel continued a race against time to find survivors in buildings collapsed by the quake or buried under landslides.
Many residents are facing harsh conditions, lacking crucial utilities such as water, gas and electricity.
Meanwhile, stations were packed as people attempted to return to their homes or flee the area.
Here are scenes from the aftermath of the New Year's Day quake.
An aerial view shows fire after the earthquake in a residential area of Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Monday.
| KYODO
Cracks in a parking lot in Nanao, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Tuesday morning.
| KYODO
A flattened home in the town of Shika, Ishikawa Prefecture
| KYODO
An aerial view of a fractured road near Anamizu, Ishikawa Prefecture
| KYODO
Damaged houses, including one totally collapsed, in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Tuesday
| AFP-JIJI
With blankets and suitcases, residents evacuate in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Tuesday.
| KYODO
A car stuck in a large road fissure near Ujima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Tuesday
| REUTERS
Smoke rises over a massive fire in Wajima that burned most of the town's famed market area.
| JIJI
Smoke rising from an area following a large fire in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Tuesday
| AFP-JIJI
The tsunami-hit port in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Tuesday
| KYODO / VIA REUTERS
A collapsed building in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Tuesday following Monday's massive earthquake
| KYODO
The chaotic aftermath of Monday's fire and quake in the market area of Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Tuesday
| KYODO / VIA REUTERS
An SOS message is spelled out in the school yard at Kanazawa University's Noto Campus on Tuesday.
| KYODO
Keiko Teratani, a resident of Noto, walks down a street lined with damaged homes. Teratani said her own home was so damaged by Monday's quake that she slept in her car.
| KYODO
A damaged candle shop in Nanao, Ishikawa Prefecture
| KYODO
Crowds fill Kanazawa Station the day after a major quake struck the area on Monday.
| KYODO
Wajima residents shelter in a greenhouse following the strong earthquake on New Year's Day.
| JIJI
Empty shelves in a convenience store near Toyama Station around 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday
| JORDAN ALLEN
Cheif Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi speaks to the media on Tuesday.
| KYODO
SDF members and firefighters rescue a Wajima resident on Tuesday.
| JAPAN DEFENSE MINISTRY JOINT STAFF OFFICE
People line up around the town hall in Shika, Ishikawa Prefecture, as they wait to receive water at a distribution point on Tuesday.
| AFP-JIJI
