Police officers conduct a search operation at the site of a large fire occurred following an earthquake in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan, Jan 13, 2024. The powerful earthquake slammed the western coastline of Japan on New Year’s Day. (PHOTO / KYODO NEWS VIA AP)

TOKYO - The death toll rose to 220 in the central Japanese prefecture of Ishikawa on Sunday, after a series of strong quakes of up to 7.6 magnitude jolted the prefecture and its vicinity, as snow and rain continued in the quake-stricken region.

The number of people who remained unaccounted for dropped to 20 in the hardest-hit prefecture as of 9 am local time, while at least 1,015 people suffered injuries due to the quakes, local authorities said.

Since the powerful quake on Jan 1, tremors with an intensity of 1 or greater on the country's seven-tier scale system have been recorded 1,368 times as of 4 pm on Saturday

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According to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), strong winds, snow and high waves are expected in northern and eastern Japan from Sunday evening through Tuesday as the winter pressure pattern strengthened.

Winds of up to 72 kilometers per hour are forecast in the quake-hit Hokuriku region and Niigata Prefecture, with gusts of over 108 kilometers per hour on Sunday.

A cold air mass is expected to move in over the Hokuriku region and Niigata Prefecture from Monday through Tuesday, bringing heavy snow to areas on the Sea of Japan coast.

Meanwhile, since the powerful quake on Jan 1, tremors with an intensity of 1 or greater on the country's seven-tier scale system have been recorded 1,368 times as of 4 pm on Saturday, the JMA said.

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The weather agency said people could face strong tremors with an intensity of 5 or higher for about another month.