PEOPLE across a devastated swath of Japan suffered for a third day yesterday without water, electricity and proper food, as the country grappled with the enormity of a massive earthquake and tsunami that left more than 10,000 people dead in one area alone.

THE estimated death toll from Japan’s disasters has climbed past 10,000 as authorities race to combat the threat of multiple nuclear reactor meltdowns and a humanitarian food and water crisis.

Tokyo police arrested a 16-year-old high school student today on suspicion of stabbing his female classmate nearly 50 times, leaving her dead on her apartment floor, news reports said.