July 30, 2026
TOKYO – At least 12 people have been confirmed dead following Tuesday’s earthquake that struck Kumamoto Prefecture and surrounding areas, the prefectural government said on Wednesday.
The magnitude 7.1 earthquake rocked the prefecture at about 4:27 p.m., registering the maximum 7 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale in the municipalities of Uki and Hikawa. Since then, 195 tremors registering at least 1 on the scale had been observed around its focus as of 2 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Three people died at Aeon Mall Kumamoto in Kashima, which was hit by an explosion at about 5:50 p.m. on Tuesday. The whereabouts of three employees at the mall were unknown, according to Aeon Co.
Another person died in Kosa when a steel roof truss fell at a factory, the prefectural government said.
The death toll is feared to rise, the prefecture said, as six other people were in cardiac arrest.
As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, 10 people had been recovered from Aeon Mall Kumamoto, according to the prefectural government and other entities. In addition to the three who died, another person was in cardiac arrest. Five others were in less serious condition, and the condition of yet another person was unknown.
At Nippon Paper Industries Co.’s plant in Yatsushiro, a chimney broke following the earthquake, trapping 11 workers. Seven had been extracted but five of them were confirmed dead. The remaining four had yet to be located.
The power was off at 34,880 buildings in the prefecture. Sixty-five medical institutions were experiencing blackouts and water outages, while 312 homes for the elderly had similar issues.
Regarding the transportation network, Kyushu Railway Co. (JR Kyushu) decided on Wednesday to suspend services throughout the day for some sections, mostly in Kumamoto Prefecture.
It also decided to suspend services all day for the Kyushu Shinkansen line, which connects Fukuoka and Kagoshima prefectures, in a section that includes Kumamoto Station.
Japan Airlines, All Nippon Airways and Solaseed Air decided to cancel a total of 14 flights leaving or arriving at Kumamoto Airport.
Takaichi pledges all-out efforts
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Wednesday morning that her government will do its best to save as many lives as possible following the Tuesday earthquake.
“There are still people calling for help, so this is a race against time,” the prime minister said. “We will do our best to save as many lives as possible and carry out rescue operations.”
Power outages and water shortages occurred in some of the areas hit hard by the earthquake, raising concerns that many evacuees would suffer heatstroke.
“We will do our utmost to restore infrastructure facilities,” Takaichi said, adding that the government would send air conditioners and power-supply vehicles to affected areas without waiting for requests from the relevant local governments.