Earthquake in Japan

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Major earthquake rocks southern Japan, forcing hundreds of thousands to evacuate https://share.google/kHJpnbKCj4JokJ6V0

 

A 7.1 magnitude earthquake rocked southern Japan Tuesday, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate and prompting the collapse of several buildings, including a shopping mall.

 

Japanese officials instructed roughly 300,000 people in the country’s southern Kumamoto prefecture to seek shelter at evacuation centers.

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Powerful Earthquake Strikes Southern Japan; One Dead, Dozens Missing

6:14 AM on Wednesday, July 29, 2026 in Japan (JST).
KUMAMOTO, Japan — A powerful earthquake struck Japan’s southern island of Kyushu on Tuesday, killing at least one person, injuring more than 80 and leaving at least 19 missing as rescuers searched a collapsed shopping mall and paper mill. The Japan Meteorological Agency measured the shallow quake at magnitude 7.1—while the U.S. Geological Survey put it at 6.8—and recorded the strongest level on Japan’s seismic-intensity scale. About 300,000 people were directed to evacuation centers, nearly 40,000 homes lost power, and a tsunami advisory was issued and later lifted. Japan Meteorological Agency, El País

 

The earthquake struck Kumamoto Prefecture at 4:27 p.m. local time at a depth of about six miles. One person died after a house collapsed in Yatsushiro. At Aeon Mall Kumamoto, an apparent explosion—possibly caused by a gas leak—brought down part of the second floor; four injured people were rescued, while 10 remained unaccounted for. Nine more people were reported missing at a Nippon Paper Industries plant after a large chimney partially collapsed, and two workers there were recovered in cardiac arrest. Associated Press

 

The quake damaged homes, roads, bridges and sections of Kumamoto Castle, while fires were reported across the region. Rail service, including the Kyushu Shinkansen bullet train, was disrupted, and a freight train derailed in Yatsushiro. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi dispatched 300 service members and said rescue operations would receive the government’s highest priority. Prime Minister’s Office of Japan

 

A strong magnitude-6.1 aftershock and numerous smaller tremors followed the main quake, and authorities warned that powerful shaking could continue for about a week. Officials reported no abnormalities at the Sendai or Genkai nuclear power stations, and radiation levels remained unchanged. The full extent of the casualties and destruction was still being assessed late Tuesday as search crews worked through the night.