Power, Telecom Services Still Disrupted in Quake-Hit Areas; 34,000 Households Without Electricity in Ishikawa Pref.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:59 JST, January 3, 2024

Areas affected by Monday’s major earthquake continued to experience power outages and communication disruptions on Wednesday. According to Hokuriku Electric Power Co., as of Wednesday morning in Ishikawa Prefecture, approximately 34,000 households were experiencing power outages due to damage to transmission lines.

Collapsed buildings are hindering inspection operations in many areas, and the outlook for restoration of power is uncertain. On the other hand, Tohoku Electric Power Co. reported that the power outage in Niigata Prefecture was ended as of 6:50 p.m. on Tuesday.

The four major telecommunication companies — NTT Docomo Inc., KDDI Corp., SoftBank Corp. and Rakuten Mobile Inc. — continued to face challenging conditions for voice calls and data communication on Wednesday, primarily in Ishikawa Prefecture. Each company has taken measures such as deploying mobile base stations to the affected areas and providing free access to public Wi-Fi installed in commercial facilities.

Recovery efforts are progressing in some areas. By Tuesday night, NTT Docomo had resolved communication disruptions in Itoigawa, Niigata Prefecture, while SoftBank resolved communication issues in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture.

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