People gathered in the rain early Wednesday to mark the 12th anniversary of the Great Hanshin Earthquake, which resulted in the loss of more than 6,400 lives in Kobe and surrounding areas.
Relatives of the victims lit candles and prayed for the dead in silence at 5:46 a.m., the time when the temblor hit the heavily populated area on Jan. 17, 1995.
The magnitude 7.3 quake was centered on Awaji Island in the Seto Inland Sea off Hyogo Prefecture, but the heaviest toll was in Kobe.
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