The death toll from a powerful quake that triggered landslides in northern Japan has risen to 30. The majority of the dead are from the small rural town of Atsuma.
A cluster of dwellings were wrecked when a hillside collapsed from the force of the 6.6-magnitude quake, causing deep brown scars in the landscape. Around nine people are still unaccounted for in the town.
According to the government spokesman, 40,000 rescue workers were searching for survivors with the aid of bulldozers, sniffer dogs and 75 helicopters.
