UPDATE - Amid devastating earthquake, Japan warns of disinformation

UPDATES WITH STATEMENTS ON DISINFORMATION, MORE DETAILS; CHANGES HEADLINE, DECK, INTRO

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – Grappling with a devastating earthquake with at least 64 deaths reported so far, Japan on Wednesday warned of disinformation surrounding the disaster.

"There are often posts containing unfounded and unreliable information after disasters,” read an alert issued by the Japanese government’s Cabinet office dealing with prevention of disasters.

“Do not be deceived by such posts and make sure to check information from official organizations,” it added.

Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication also pointed out “false information” regarding the earthquake that hit Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa province on Monday.

According to an analysis done by Japanese public broadcaster NHK, “there were about 250,000 posts on the artificial earthquake hypothesis, including posts rejecting the idea. One post had nearly 8.5 million views.”

Many virtual posts, mainly on social media, claimed that earthquakes were “human-made.”

Urging people to careful, the ministry said false information regarding the earthquake was “being sent and spread on the internet.”

Many people still remain trapped inside the collapsed buildings while several areas of the earthquake-hit province were flooded due to high waves along the coast of the Sea of Japan.

Prime Minister Kishida Fumio said it was a “race against time to save lives.”

“People are still trapped in damaged or collapsed buildings. The government will do all it can, placing top priority on saving lives,” he told reporters on Wednesday.

Tens of hundreds of people were evacuated to safer places while many others are without electricity supplies.

Many people were injured in Ishikawa, Niigata, Fukui, Toyama, and Gifu provinces.

Many areas are still disconnected due to broken roads and suspended transportation as rubble is spread across, and the Defense Ministry is mulling the use of choppers to deliver relief material.

Rains have lashed parts of the earthquake-hit zone, which may continue through Thursday.

Details emerging so far have revealed massive damages in Wajima city of Ishikawa province where hundreds of homes and shops were destroyed.

Japan has mobilized around 10,000 soldiers for search, rescue, and relief operations.

Central Japan has been hit by many earthquakes since Monday afternoon with magnitudes as strong as 7.6, triggering a tsunami warning, a large fire, and four-foot-high waves.

The tsunami warning was later lifted by the authorities.

The epicenter of the earthquake was in the Noto region facing the Sea of Japan.