TOKYO, July 28 (Xinhua) -- Several workers are feared missing after a smokestack collapsed on Tuesday at a Nippon Paper factory in Yatsushiro City, Kumamoto Prefecture, after a powerful earthquake struck the region earlier, local media reported.
Police in Yatsushiro said they had received reports that a smokestack at the paper mill had collapsed, leaving several employees unaccounted for, public broadcaster NHK reported.
Authorities said rescue efforts have yet to begin because emergency calls from across the disaster-hit area have overwhelmed local responders. ■