Rescue mission underway in NE Japan

Islam Times reports from Press TV: Japan's military has mobilized thousands of troops, 300 warplanes and 40 ships to save thousands of people caught in the rubble and mud left behind the magnitude 8.9 earthquake that erupted on Friday, 15 miles (24 kilometers) down, off the north-east coast of Japan's main island, a Press TV correspondent in Tokyo reported on Saturday.

The devastating quake, nearly 8,000 times stronger than one that struck New Zealand late last month, unleashed a horrifying 10-meter (33-foot) high wave that devoured Pacific coastal regions in northeastern Japan, sweeping away boats, cars and homes while widespread fires burned out of control.

The combined number of people, who lost their lives or are unaccounted for in the catastrophic quake in Japan, has topped 1,200, according to a police tally.

5.6 million households have reportedly had no power on Saturday and more than one million households were without water.

"One thing I'm hearing is that people who are up there are streaming away from the coast as you might have imagined to evacuation zones, many of them are trying to make their way down to south to relatives… the scale of the damage, I think we are still only scratching the surface, I mean it's going to take days if not weeks to figure out exactly how bad this is, and how much damage is done how many lives are lost," the Press TV corresponded said when asked about the still-unfolding situation in quake-hit areas.

According to Japan's National Police Agency, 703 people have been confirmed dead and 784 were missing, with 1,128 injured, excluding bodies reportedly found on the Sendai coast.

Japanese authorities ordered 2,000 residents living by a nuclear plant in Fukushima to evacuate after a reactor cooling system failed.

Meanwhile, Japan's two main carriers cancelled about 300 flights nationwide, with airlines from around the world cancelling their flights to Japan as well.

A number of Tokyo-bound flights have re-routed to Alaska amid reports that about 23,000 passengers have been stranded in Tokyo's two international airports.