MORIOKA (Japan), Feb 27 (Bernama-Kyodo) -- More than 80 homes appear to have burned down and some 2,000 people have been ordered to evacuate after a wildfire broke out in a northeastern Japan city, Kyodo News Agency reported citing local authorities on Thursday.
The blaze has been burning since Wednesday and has burned across 600 hectares of land in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, the municipal government said, and firefighting activities continued through the night.
Self-Defence Forces helicopters were mobilised to the site on Thursday, while the Fire and Disaster Management Agency called for emergency support from firefighting departments in six nearby prefectures.
Nearby schools and kindergartens were closed on Thursday, while 500 homes in Ofunato were without power, according to local authorities. A section of a train line in the city was also suspended.
Wildfires previously broke out in Ofunato on Feb 19 and were largely extinguished by Tuesday. While the latest fire is close to the site of the first blaze, officials said they are not sure if the two are linked.
-- BERNAMA-KYODO
