A total of 222 people were reported missing in Ishikawa as of 2:00 p.m. local time on Friday and the missing individuals, with a significant number being elderly residents, are predominantly concentrated in the cities of Wajima and Suzu, Xinhua reported citing the Japanese local media.
More than 100 residents are estimated to be trapped under collapsed buildings in the most-hit coastal city of Wajima following the earthquake on New Year's Day, Mayor Shigeru Sakaguchi told reporters on Friday morning.
Wajima's roads have been cut off and there have been frequent landslides, making the search for survivors difficult, Sakaguchi said, adding that rescue efforts are focusing on places where people have heard voices from the rubble.
As of 1 p.m. local time on Friday, at least 830 people are stranded in 32 districts in four municipalities across the Noto region, where many roads remain severed, leaving some communities completely isolated.
The region's infrastructure has suffered severe setbacks, with around 30,000 households facing power outages and 80,000 households in 13 cities and towns experiencing water supply disruptions.
A series of strong earthquakes, with a major one of 7.6 magnitude, on Monday struck at a shallow depth in the Noto region of Ishikawa.
Centered around 30 km east-northeast of Wajima, the devastating quake registered a maximum intensity of 7.
AMK/PR