Death toll rises to 34 after Kyushu earthquake
A magnitude 7.1 quake in southwestern Japan has killed 34 people, left thousands without utilities and forced many into shelters as search efforts continue.
The Kumamoto prefectural government said the death toll from Tuesday's magnitude 7.1 earthquake on Kyushu rose to 34, with another death under investigation. The quake triggered an explosion at the Aeon Mall in Kashima, caused a factory chimney to collapse and flattened homes across the region.
More than 79,000 homes remained without water and over 3,500 without electricity on Friday, prompting authorities to house more than 9,000 people in shelters where additional power sources were installed for air conditioning. Temperatures in Kumamoto city were expected to reach 36 °C (97 °F), raising concerns about heat-related illness.
Search teams continued to work at the collapsed mall, where the second floor gave way and trapped shoppers. The chief cabinet secretary, Minoru Kihara, said seven people were confirmed dead at the site and 11 rescued, while the number of missing remains unknown. A separate operation at a Nippon Paper Industries factory in Yatsushiro rescued 11 people and confirmed nine deaths after a chimney collapse.
Bullet-train services between Kumamoto and Fukuoka resumed on a reduced schedule, but lines to Kagoshima and local trains in the hardest-hit southern areas stayed suspended. In Hikawa town, more than 800 of 4,500 homes were reported damaged or destroyed, leaving residents to sleep in cars or public parking areas.
"Since it's a wooden house, the shaking is really intense," said 70-year-old resident Ayako Sudo, who has been sleeping in her car for weeks after the quake. "Even when the earthquakes are small, it shakes, and it brings up this feeling of fear. So I think I'd really prefer somewhere that feels safe."