The devastating earthquake struck Japan’s Noto Peninsula and surrounding areas in the centre of the country on Monday, killing at least 64 people.

Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani offered his condolences to Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Tuesday following the deadly 7.6 earthquake, the Amiri Diwan said in a statement.

The devastating earthquake struck Japan’s Noto Peninsula and surrounding areas in the centre of the country on Monday, killing at least 64 people, the Japanese news agency (Kyodo) reported on Wednesday.

Buildings in the affected areas sustained major damage as several fires were reported in various parts, all of which have been contained by firefighters on the ground, Kyodo added. A seven-floor building collapsed sideways due to the earthquake.

Japanese authorities ordered more than 97,000 people in nine areas to evacuate, with around 1,000 people evacuated to an Air Self-Defense Force base in Wajima.

The last time such an earthquake occurred in the country was in 2018 in the Hokkaido region, where at least 41 people were killed.

The Japanese news agency confirmed that the exact “extent of the disaster” is unknown two days on, as the Japanese Meteorological Agency warns of potential mudslides. 

“The situation is devastating, as about 90 percent of houses have been completely or nearly completely destroyed,” Suzu Mayor Masuhiro Izumiya told a prefectural government meeting on Tuesday, as quoted by Kyodo.

Rescue operations are still ongoing as Japan’s Self-Defense Forces deploy helicopters to deliver urgent supplies to remote areas.

Speaking to the press on Tuesday, Japan’s earthquake research committee said the seismic activity in the earthquake-affected areas would likely continue. 

A separate devastating incident occurred in Japan on Tuesday when a Japan Airlines Co. plane and a Japan Coast Guard aircraft collided at Tokyo’s Haneda airport. The Japan Coast Guard aircraft was departing the airport to deliver relief supplies for earthquake-affected areas.

Japan Airlines maintained that it had informed the air traffic control about its landing and the aircraft had no abnormalities.

The cause behind the collision remains unknown as Japanese authorities immediately ordered a probe into the incident.

Five of the six coastguards in the aircraft died as all 379 passengers and crew aboard the Japan Airlines plane escaped without major injuries, according to Kyodo.