Tornado kills 9 in Hokkaido of northern Japan

A tornado hit eastern Hokkaido town of Saroma Tuesday afternoon, killing at least nine people and injuring 10 others at a tunnel construction site, Kyodo News said.

About 20 people were buried under collapsed prefabricated houses at the work site, police and firefighters said, adding that at least six other people are missing.

Some 10 buildings collapsed in the town when the tornado took place at 1 p.m., and electricity to part of the town and to the neighboring city of Kitami was cut off, local officials said.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's official residence has set up a liaison office at its crisis management center to deal with the accident.

Source: Xinhua