An unknown number of people have been killed, and tsunami damage is extensive in the wake of a huge offshore earthquake striking Japan in mid-afternoon, local time, Friday.  Dramatic pictures are reaching American television of damage from the resulting tsunami, in many cases sweeping a wave of debris inland.So far, there have been no reports of major buildings collapsing, and no major fires sweeping through neighborhoods, as happened in the wake of the Kobe earthquake in 1995, which resulted in over 5000 deaths.Pictures of Sendai Airport, a few hundred miles northeast of Tokyo show the airport completely flooded by the tsunami. However, that field is adjacent to the Pacific coastline, directly exposed to the tsunami's fury. (Read Full Post)