The big pictures: The moment Japan's cataclysmic
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1365318/Japan-earthquake-tsunami-The-moment-mother-nature-engulfed-nation.html
Japan was
today plunged into chaos after a cataclysmic earthquake sent merciless
tsunami waves rushing through its helpless streets.
The unforgiving tide of water unleashed after one of the biggest quakes in recent history obliterated tens of thousands of buildings, devouring almost anything in its path.
As the death toll soared, dozens more countries braced themselves for similar scenes of destruction as the full force of the mother nature powered through the Pacific ocean.
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Helpless: A ship, dwarfed by the sheer size of the whirlpool, is drawn ever closer towards the vortex as is tossed about in the foaming waters off the port of Oarai, Ibaraki
Menacing: While the sea looks calm near the coast, a huge wave gathers momentum in the distance, and the foam and spray provide an idea of its ferocity
Chaos: A man wearing a helmet picks his way
carefully though the rubble (left) while cars are shown gridlocked in
either direction in Sendai (right)
Caved in: In the aftermath of the biggest earthquake in Japan's history, workers survey the huge hole in the middle of a road in Satte
Two women in Urayasu city, Chiba, scramble up a road that was buckled by the force of the quake. Right, a young woman wells up and leans on her friend as the true scale of the disaster that has claimed the lives of hundreds of people becomes apparent
Collapsed: Three shocked employees look at what has become of the factory in Sukagawa city, Fukushima, where moments earlier they had been working
Raging seas: The tsunami pours through trees and engulfs homes on the coast of Natori, Miyagi Prefecture, after the earthquake struck
The same scene just moments later shows how
the entire area with dozens of homes is completely obliterated by the
unforgiving
waters which swept away anything in their path. Bobbing about on the
surface is all the debris the waters have picked up along the way
Swelling: The murky flow of mud and debris trapped in the tide of water washes over the tarmac car park at Sendai airport in northern Japan
Destruction: Tsunami tidal waves race upstream along the Naka river at Hitachinaka city in Ibaraki hours after the massive 8.9 magnitude quake struck this morning
Shock: A young couple at a bookshop in Sendai, northern Japan, embrace as the ceiling collapses and the building rocks from the force of the quake while in Tokyo, right, black smoke rises from fires caused by the quake
Aftermath: Clouds of grey smoke billow out of an oil refinery, and an inferno burns at its centre, in Chiba following the earthquake
Concerned: Two office workers in Tokyo brace themselves for a potential disaster as the earthquake rumbled buildings and smoke can be seen rising from skyscrapers outside
Effects: A mother and her daughter watch
nervously as pools of water from burst pipes encroach on the pavement in
Tokyo while, right, paramedics carry away casualties from a nearby
building that was rocked by the earthquake
Red alert: Flames engulf homes that were hit with the full force of the tsunami in the Miyagi region of north eastern Japan
Debris: An eerie mist sweeps across the debris of destroyed homes and cars caught in the raging tsunami waters in Kesennuma in Miyagi, northern Japan
Explosion: Flames reach hundreds of feet into
the sky after a natural gas facility in Chiba near Tokyo explodes after
the earthquake, while right, a fire tears through residential houses in
Yamada in northern Japan
Stranded: Shoppers sit on the floor of a department store as train and bus services were suspended due to the earthquake
Cold: Elderly women who are likely to have experienced a number of earthquakes in their lifetime sit on the street as they take in the most recent disaster which is one of the worst in recent history
Stuck: Stranded commuters inside Tokyo railway
station prepare themselves for a long wait as the city, where
infrastructure is designed to withstand disasters, recovers from the
earthquake
Aftershocks: A frail elderly man rests under a
blanket as all around him the country is gripped by the full scale of
the earthquake and right, young Japanese people evacuated from buildings
at risk of collapsing wrap blankets around themselves
At risk: Confusion spead amoung passengers who were taken off planes at Narita International Airport in Naita city, suburban Tokyo
Pile-up: New cars ready to be shipped are stacked on top of each other after the water gushed through Hitachinaka city in Ibaraki prefecture
Shock: The full destructive power of the earthquake is evident in this concrete road in Fukushima prefecture that was snapped in half by the disaster
Destroyed: The remains of houses are surrounded by broken wood and concrete after flood waters engulfed Iwaki town, Fukushima prefecture
Explosions: Giant fireballs rise from a burning oil refinery in Ichihara, Chiba Prefecture after being shaken by the earthquake off the coast
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