As survivors of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami grapple with the enormity of the devastation, more footage continues to emerge showing the moment the tsunami struck Japan's northeast coast.
Residents of the port town of Kamaishi in Iwate prefecture watched in horror as the first huge tsunami waves hit, sweeping away cars and buildings.
One group managed to scramble to safety on higher ground, where they watched as the water surged towards them.
Others were stranded on the roof of a multi-storey building as the water level rose rapidly below.
To the south of Kamaishi, in Miyagi prefecture, the police chief told a gathering of disaster relief officials that his estimate for deaths was more than 10,000, a police spokesman said.
In the town of Minamisanriku, 10,000 people - nearly two-thirds of the population - have not been heard from since the tsunami wiped it out, a government spokesman said.
APTN
source: newshub archive
