STORY: Homes were toppled and cars scattered across a landslide in the city of Kanazawa, a day after a powerful magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck Central Japan.

Scenes of devastation like this were all across Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture which saw some of the worst damage.

Thousands of rescue personnel were dispatched to the Peninsula, as authorities fear a climbing death toll.

Public broadcaster NHK said around 33,000 homes in the prefecture were without power on Tuesday, amid freezing temperatures.

Rescue efforts were hampered by damage to the affected area’s roads, said Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

“We have been making all efforts to gather information since yesterday evening, but the blockage of roads means it is extremely difficult to access the northern part of the Noto peninsula.”

More eyewitness video has emerged from Monday’s earthquake, including the moment the tremor rattled vehicles and left passengers inside panicking.

A shrine in Ishikawa creaking and swaying as the quake hit.

And a tsunami around 3 feet high that struck parts of the west coast along the Sea of Japan.

Eyewitness footage showed the moment it hit Japan’s coastal Joetsu city on Monday.

Tsunami warnings have since been lifted and many, who had evacuated, were able to return to their homes on Tuesday.

The quake comes at a sensitive time for Japan’s nuclear industry. It came under fierce criticism since an earthquake and tsunami in 2011 triggered nuclear meltdowns in Fukushima.

Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority said it detected no irregularities at nuclear plants along the Sea of Japan.

The agency said the closest plant to the epicenter in Ishikawa had already halted its two reactors before the quake hit and saw no impact from it.