Noto Peninsula Earthquake

Mobile Communications Mostly Restored in Japan’s Quake-Hit Areas

The Yomiuri Shimbun

18:06 JST, January 18, 2024

NTT Docomo Inc. and Rakuten Mobile Inc. completed emergency works to restore mobile communications in Ishikawa Prefecture, which was struck by a powerful earthquake on Jan. 1, except for areas where roads were blocked as a result of landslides and other obstructions, the companies announced Wednesday night.

KDDI Corp. and SoftBank Corp. had already completed such works in the prefecture.

However, despite the emergency work, the four companies’ communication services continued to be disrupted in mountainous areas as well as in some coastal areas in the cities of Wajima and Suzu in the prefecture.

The telecommunications companies are planning to work toward fully restoring services as more roads are cleared.

The earthquake, which registered a maximum of 7 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale and triggered fires and tsunami, caused up to about 840 base stations to stop working, mainly in Ishikawa Prefecture, due to power outages and damaged communication lines.

The companies began working to solve the disruptions by deploying power-supply vehicles and mobile base stations.