The death toll and the number of missing people in Japan continue to rise as search and rescue operations reach towns that were hit by last Friday’s quake and tsunami.

On the fifth day since the disaster, the Japanese police said that as of 2 p.m. Tuesday, 24-hundred-78 people are confirmed to be dead and over 36-hundred are missing.

Also, 460-thousand have lost their homes and are staying at 26-hundred shelters in six prefectures.

The Japan Meteorological Agency forecasts rain or snow to fall Wednesday in northeastern Japan, the hardest hit by the quake, and that cold weather will also continue through Friday.

Explosions at nuclear power plants have also impaired power generation. Planned blackouts were implemented three to six hours daily from Monday in Toyko and eight nearby prefectures.