Japanese police estimated that the number of people, who were killed or remain missing due to the earthquake and tsunami, to Saturday morning, about 1,200 people. More than a thousand homes were destroyed by the disaster that struck the coast of northeastern Japan on Friday.
Kyodo news agency, citing Japanese police reports, revealed that the death toll currently at least 398 people. In addition, 805 people remain missing after the quake measuring 8.9 on the Richter Scale (SR), followed by a tsunami up to as high as 10 meters.
However, according to the latest news from twitter account Embassy in Tokyo, the death toll increases and the missing dwindled. A total of 612 dead and about 700 missing, according to a message Embassy in Tokyo via Twitter by quoting local media.
Currently the search of victims is still ongoing, authorities worry that the number of people killed could reach more than 1,000 lives. The earthquake on Friday is believed to be the biggest in more than 100 years in Japanese history.
"This is the largest earthquake since the Meiji Era [19th century]. It is feared more than 1,000 people died," said Chief Cabinet Minister Yukio Edano, Saturday, March 12, 2011.
Search the victim is still ongoing and the authorities now also have to fight hard to overcome the destruction of a facility of a nuclear reactor to prevent radioactive leaks.