Here| are some of the latest facts and figures from today's U.N. update on the situation in Japan's quake and tsunami-hit areas:

- More than 24,000 people are feared dead or missing: 9,408 deaths have been confirmed so far, and 14,716 people remain missing

- The government has yet to release an estimate of the total number of people affected by the disaster

- The number of people in evacuation centres in and outside the affected areas has dropped to 261,000, nearly 57,000 less than on Tuesday. The total includes 83,778 people evacuated from the 20km zone around the Fukushima nuclear power plant

- Growing numbers of people are relocating to unaffected prefectures. Nearly 30,000 evacuees have already moved to 437 municipalities in 43 prefectures

- The governor of Miyagi estimates it will take six months to a year for all the displaced to be accommodated in temporary homes