Japan to check concrete walls after Osaka quake deaths

Residents clean up debris in Ibaraki, Osaka, western Japan, Tuesday, June 19, 2018. The magnitude 6.1 earthquake that struck the area early Monday damaged buildings and left many homes without water or gas. The quake also grounded flights in and out of Osaka and paralyzed traffic and commuter trains most of the day. (Yoshitaka Sugawara/Kyodo News via AP)

TOKYO — Japan’s government has ordered an inspection of schools walls across the country after two of the four deaths in Monday’s earthquake in Osaka were caused by falling concrete walls.

Authorities said Tuesday that the magnitude 6.1 earthquake injured more than 370 people in the region, damaged many buildings and disrupted traffic.

The death of a 9-year-old girl just outside her school prompted the Education Ministry on Tuesday to order all public schools nationwide to inspect their walls — a known risk in quakes but often ignored. An elderly man also was killed by a collapsing wall.

Relief workers and residents continued their work to bring life back to normal, but many homes were without clean water or gas Tuesday.  /muf