Earthquake halts work at factories due to power outages, equipment damage

Department store staff in Sendai deal with the aftermath of the earthquake after being unable to open the store on schedule on Sunday. (Credit: The Yomiuri Shimbun)

The magnitude-7.3 earthquake Saturday night off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture prompted many factories and manufacturers to halt production in its aftermath. In addition to power outages, the earthquake caused a number of other problems affecting industries in multiple prefectures.

Damage to the production line at the Asahi Breweries Fukushima Brewery in Motomiya, Fukushima Prefecture, halted its operations. According to an official, shipments are likely to resume in early March.

At the Kirin Brewery in Sendai, parts of the ceiling and walls were damaged, along with some products in storage.

Major heavy industry manufacturer IHI Corp. has suspended operations at its plants in Soma, Fukushima Prefecture, which make aircraft engine parts and gas turbine parts, due to failures of its power distribution system. Most of the total of about 2,000 workers were placed on standby at home on Monday, with the exception of some employees who were engaged in restoration work. Production lines were damaged, and a date to resume operations is yet to be set.

Mitsui Chemical's Ichihara Works in Ichihara, Chiba Prefecture, experienced a power failure, halting production facilities. The company believes it will take 10 to 14 days before restarting the facilities.

Twelve prefectures in the Tohoku and Kanto regions, including Fukushima, Miyagi, Tochigi, Kanagawa and Shizuoka, experienced power outages following the earthquake. The outages affected about 950,000 households.

Most power outages occurred as electric companies deliberately cut power after 12 thermal power plants in the Tohoku and Kanto areas were shut off, making less power available. Most power had been restored by Sunday morning, according to the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry.

Many retail stores shut their doors as well.

Eight stores of Aeon Co. remained closed on Monday, including stores in Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures, due to damage such as broken sprinklers and ceilings.

Postal and delivery services were affected as well. Citing traffic regulations on expressways, among other factors, Japan Post Holdings Co. stated on Monday that some mail, including its Yu-Pack parcel service, to and from the Tohoku region and Hokkaido will be delivered between a half day and a day later than usual.

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