WAJIMA, Japan -- A powerful earthquake that hit Japan on New Year's Day killed at least 48 people, with rescue teams struggling in freezing temperatures on Tuesday to reach isolated areas where many people are feared trapped under toppled buildings. In Suzu, a coastal town of just over 5,000 households near the quake's epicenter, 90% of houses may have been destroyed, according to its mayor Masuhiro Izumiya. "The situation is catastrophic," he said. The quake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6 struck on Monday afternoon, prompting people in western coastal areas to flee to higher ground as tsunami waves swept cars and houses into the water. Around 200 tremors h...Keep on reading: Japan quake toll nears 50 with many feared trapped in freezing cold