Rescue teams are searching damaged buildings and industrial sites in southern Japan after a magnitude 7.1 earthquake triggered more than 100 aftershocks, widespread power outages and major transport disruption.
By Muhamamd Irfan I SCN
KUMAMOTO, Japan — More than 100 aftershocks have shaken southwestern Japan following a powerful earthquake that killed at least 13 people, damaged roads and bridges and left rescuers racing to reach people trapped beneath collapsed structures.
The magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck Japan’s southern island of Kyushu on Tuesday, with its epicentre around 20 kilometres south of Kumamoto City. The tremor registered the maximum level of seven on Japan’s seismic intensity scale in some areas, indicating violent shaking capable of seriously damaging buildings and infrastructure.
Emergency workers, police officers and military personnel continued searching the wreckage on Wednesday as authorities warned that additional strong earthquakes and landslides could occur during the coming week.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described the rescue operation as a “race against time,” saying the government would mobilise all available resources to locate survivors. More than 4,500 military personnel were deployed across the disaster zone, while specialist teams concentrated on locations where people were believed to be trapped.
Deadly explosion damages shopping mall
One of the most serious incidents occurred at an Aeon shopping mall in Kashima, near Kumamoto.
Customers had reportedly been evacuated after the initial earthquake, but an explosion struck the building just over an hour later, partially collapsing its second floor. Eight people were removed from the wreckage and three were confirmed dead, while several employees remained unaccounted for.
Officials said rescuers detected the smell of gas inside the mall, although investigators had not established whether a gas leak caused the explosion. The incident demonstrated how secondary hazards—including fires, damaged gas lines and structural failures—can remain deadly even after the main shaking stops.
At a Nippon Paper Industries factory in Yatsushiro, five people were killed when a large chimney collapsed. Emergency workers searched the industrial site for additional missing workers while engineers assessed whether surrounding structures remained safe.
More than 100 aftershocks recorded
The main earthquake was followed by more than 100 smaller tremors through Wednesday, according to reports from the affected region.
Residents were advised to avoid unstable buildings, damaged hillsides and coastal or river areas where weakened ground could collapse. Japan’s meteorological authorities warned that communities which experienced the strongest shaking could face another significant earthquake during the following days.
Many residents spent the night inside evacuation centres or vehicles because they feared returning to damaged homes.
Japan initially issued a tsunami warning following the earthquake, but it was lifted within approximately two hours after no major destructive waves were recorded.
Power, water and hospitals disrupted
More than 36,000 homes remained without electricity on Wednesday, while thousands of households also lost water or gas supplies.
The outages created an additional emergency as temperatures across the region climbed above 32 degrees Celsius. Authorities supplied electricity generators and air conditioning equipment to shelters amid concerns that displaced residents, elderly people and rescue workers could suffer heat-related illnesses.
Hospitals in and around the epicentral area struggled to treat large numbers of patients while dealing with damaged equipment and interrupted power and water supplies.
One hospital in Uki said it could no longer operate normally after losing electricity. Another suspended new admissions after receiving dozens of earthquake victims, including patients suffering burns, fractures and injuries caused by falling objects.
Roads, trains and factories affected
The earthquake cracked roads, damaged homes and caused part of a bridge to collapse into the Kumagawa River.
Kyushu’s high-speed bullet train services were suspended, flights were cancelled or diverted and operations at Kumamoto airport were disrupted while authorities inspected runways and terminal facilities.
Several major manufacturers temporarily stopped production, including Sony, Honda, Renesas Electronics and Tokyo Electron. Toyota also suspended operations at three factories outside Kumamoto because of concerns about suppliers in the affected region.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company evacuated employees from its Kumamoto-area plant as a precaution before beginning a gradual resumption of operations. The disruption highlights Kumamoto’s growing importance as a semiconductor and advanced manufacturing centre.
Memories of the 2016 Kumamoto disaster
The earthquake revived memories of the deadly Kumamoto earthquakes of 2016, which killed hundreds of people through direct casualties and disaster-related deaths and damaged thousands of buildings.
Kumamoto Castle, which was badly damaged in 2016 and has undergone years of restoration work, again suffered damage to some of its historic stone walls.
Japan experiences frequent earthquakes because it lies along the Pacific Ring of Fire, where several tectonic plates meet. However, strict construction regulations and earthquake-resistant engineering are credited with preventing substantially greater destruction during many major seismic events.
Authorities cautioned that the full scale of the latest disaster remained unclear as rescue teams continued entering damaged communities and searching collapsed buildings.
SCN Unique Angle
The disaster is not only a humanitarian emergency. It also threatens one of Japan’s fastest-growing semiconductor manufacturing regions. Temporary shutdowns involving Sony, Renesas, Tokyo Electron and TSMC could create supply-chain concerns if inspections reveal serious damage or extended interruptions.