More than 100 aftershocks shook Japan’s south-western Kyushu region after a powerful earthquake struck Kumamoto Prefecture on Tuesday, which left at least 13 people dead and led to search and rescue operations on war footing.
Rescue teams continued to comb through the rubble of a paper factory and a shopping mall in Kumamoto on Wednesday, where several people remained trapped.
The operation was being carried out in temperatures of around 35°C, with authorities warning both rescuers and survivors to take precautions against heatstroke.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi called the ongoing rescue operations as “truly a race against time”, and said more than 4,600 personnel had been deployed while thousands of residents remained in evacuation centres while many households continue to be without electricity.
Japan’s Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued a notice warning residents to remain alert for further strong aftershocks.
“For the next week or so, especially the next two to three days, we would like people to watch out for potential earthquakes with a maximum seismic intensity of 7,” a JMA official said.
The earthquake struck Kumamoto Prefecture on Kyushu Island at 4:27pm local time on Tuesday.
The JMA measured the magnitude at 7.1, while the US Geological Survey later estimated it at 6.8.
The shallow earthquake had an epicentre about 20km south of Kumamoto City at a depth of 10km.
Among the worst-hit sites was the Aeon Mall in Kashima, where part of the second floor collapsed before an explosion damaged the building. Captured video footage showed white smoke rising from the shopping centre as shoppers flooded into the car park, with large sections of the exterior blown away, exposing the building’s steel framework.
Aeon Mall President Akio Yoshida confirmed the deaths of three people, adding that four others were taken to hospital. One person was rescued from a bathroom and another was reported to be in cardiac arrest. Three people remained missing as search operations continued.
“We sincerely apologise for this incident,” Yoshida said at a press conference.
Meanwhile, a paper factory in Yatsushiro City was similarly sustained heavy damage. According to NHK, two people were found with no signs of life while nine others remained unaccounted for.
Defence Minister Shinjirō Koizumi said around 300 air conditioning units would be flown into Kumamoto and distributed to the worst-affected areas to support evacuees.
Footage broadcast by NHK showed cracked roads and bridges, buildings engulfed in flames and widespread structural damage. Train services remained suspended, while power outages affected thousands of homes.
Residents awoke on Wednesday to scenes of extensive destruction, including collapsed buildings and damage to the worship hall of the 19th-century Yatsushiro Shrine, as emergency crews continued the search for survivors.
Tuesday’s quake comes a month after the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that struck Japan on June 25, 2026. The epicenter was located off the coast of Iwate Prefecture in northeastern Japan at a depth of about 34 to 50 kilometers. The powerful offshore quake saw tremors shaking buildings hundreds of kilometers away in Tokyo.
