Mercy Corps: Update from Japan After Thursday’s 7.1-Magnitude Aftershock

A welcome update from the Mercy Corps Blog on the situation in Japan after this Thursday’s 7.1 quake:

The main effect of Thursday’s 7.1 aftershock is that most of the area is still without electricity. As a result, on Friday most shops were closed or their stock was in short supply, so people lacked food and supplies, and evacuees in temporary shelters spent the day in darkness. No trains were running. These hardships, combined with the fears and anxieties triggered by the major aftershock and frequent smaller aftershocks, continue to make life difficult for survivors, as well as for responders.

…Malka Older — who is working on our economic recovery efforts — yesterday went to Oshima, an island in the bay of Kesennuma. They had just gotten electricity back the day before yesterday and then it went out again with the new earthquake. She reports that some people said yesterday’s earthquake felt stronger than the tsunami earthquake, and she saw some minor additional damage (broken windows, etc) but as far as she could tell nothing major had gone down.

You can also find additional coverage on the aftershock’s aftermath on MSNBC.com.