At least 48 people were killed in an earthquake that struck the west coast of central Japan on Monday, but the balance of power is far from complete as search and rescue operations are still ongoing. Work is difficult due to low temperatures. “Saving lives is our priority and we are in a battle against time,” Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said. “It is very important that people trapped in houses are rescued immediately,” he stressed. The earthquake that occurred in the Ishikawa area reached a magnitude of 7.6 on the Richter scale. More than 150 aftershocks have already been recorded, some of them very intense. About 30 thousand families were still left without electricity in their homes yesterday. In the coastal city of Suzu, an estimated one-fifth of the houses were destroyed. US President Joe Biden expressed his full readiness to provide “all necessary assistance.”