The number of people confirmed dead or listed as missing in Japan rose above 27,000 nearly two weeks after a massive earthquake and tsunami struck the north-east coast.

There are fears of a much higher toll from the disaster, which flattened entire towns along the Pacific coast of the country's main island of Honshu.

The National Police Agency said 9811 people had been confirmed dead and 17,541 officially listed as missing - a total of 27,352 - as of 11pm (AEDT) as a result of the March 11 catastrophe.

A total of 2779 people have been injured. The quake has become Japan's deadliest natural disaster since the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake, which killed more than 142,000 people. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced from their homes and have taken shelter in emergency facilities, Herald Sun reported.