The death toll from a magnitude 7.1 earthquake in southwestern Japan climbed to 28 on Thursday as rescue workers raced against extreme heat. The disaster, which struck the Kumamoto area on Kyushu island, destroyed homes and triggered a deadly mall explosion, leaving thousands without power and water.
Kumamoto Earthquake Toll Rises to 28 Amid Ongoing Searches
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara announced that a police tally put the death toll at 28, a figure that includes cases still under investigation by authorities. The Kumamoto prefectural government separately reported at least 63 injuries, five of them serious.
As emergency workers combed through rural communities, hundreds of people continued to stay in roughly 400 evacuation centers set up in gymnasiums and other large spaces. Nearly 23,000 homes remained without electricity, while more than 10,000 residents sheltered in facilities where workers added power sources to operate air conditioning units. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi stressed the urgency of the response during rescue operations, noting that there are people who are still waiting to be rescued, and it’s a race against time
and pledging that officials will go all out to find and rescue as many people as we can.
Mall Collapse and Factory Chimney Failures Compound Disaster
The disaster caused catastrophic structural failures across the region, most notably at the Aeon Mall shopping center in Kashima city. The facility was bustling with thousands of customers when the earthquake struck, prompting the evacuation of roughly 3,000 people to a parking lot before a secondary gas explosion rocked another section of the building where employees were still working. The mall’s second floor collapsed, trapping people inside and leaving six people confirmed dead at the site among 11 individuals pulled from the wreckage, according to Kumamoto authorities.
In the Yatsushiro area, the disaster struck a Nippon Paper Industries factory where a chimney collapse killed eight people. Ten others were rescued from the debris, while one person remained missing, according to the Kumamoto prefectural government disaster team. Separately, the Vietnamese government reported the death of a Vietnamese technical intern who was killed by a falling crane at his factory. The victim, who had arrived in the country in January, marked the first reported death of a foreign national in the earthquake.
Extreme Heat and Infrastructure Strain Test Recovery Teams
Sweltering weather complicated the work of emergency responders and heightened health risks for survivors across the Kumamoto prefecture. The Ministry of Environment issued a heat stroke alert for the area as temperatures were expected to reach as high as 33 degrees Celsius (91 degrees Fahrenheit). Evacuees at shelters faced intense heat alongside lingering utility disruptions, with thousands of households lacking running water or reliable electricity.
Self-Defense Forces joined hundreds of professional rescue personnel, including specialized firefighters from Taiwan, to search the rubble.
Regional Impact and Historical Context in Kyushu
Transportation networks across the island sustained significant disruptions following the seismic event. The disaster brings back difficult memories for residents of Kumamoto, which experienced a deadly earthquake in 2016 that claimed at least 50 lives.
As federal authorities prepare to deliver food and emergency necessities to hard-hit zones, local families continue to wait near damaged sites for news of missing loved ones. Officials maintain that search operations will proceed continuously despite the escalating casualty figures and adverse weather conditions.
