Update at 9:04 a.m. ET: The Kyodo News Agency reports that 8,000 defense force troops have been dispatched for quake relief. In addition, one defense force team has been ordered to fly to the Fukushima nuclear plant. Kyodo says Japan asked the United States for assistance after the quake.

Update at 8:57 a.m. ET: Japan's Kyodo News Agency reports that police in Miyagi prefecture say 200 to 300 bodies have been found in Sendai.

Earlier post: The Jiji Press news agency reports that authorities have found 200 to 300 bodies on a beach near Sendai, Japan, after the devastating earthquake and tsunami.