A massive blaze started on Tuesday night in Oita, southern Japan, burning more than 48,000 sq m. Photo: AP PHOTO

A fire has ripped through more than 170 buildings and killed one person in a southern Japanese coastal city, with military and firefighting helicopters scrambling to extinguish the country's largest urban blaze in almost half a century.

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Aerial footage from broadcasters showed houses reduced to rubble and thick plumes of smoke rising from the hilly Saganoseki district of Oita city, which overlooks a fishing harbour renowned for its premium Seki-brand mackerel.

The flames

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