Powerful 7.1-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Southwestern Japan

Reuters

Japan Hit by Powerful 7.1-Magnitude Quake as Rescue Efforts Continue.

A powerful 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck southwestern Japan on Tuesday, leaving dozens of people injured, damaging buildings and infrastructure, and triggering fires across parts of Kumamoto Prefecture.

The earthquake struck the island of Kyushu at 7:27 GMT, registering the highest level on Japan's Shindo seismic intensity scale, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Authorities briefly issued a tsunami warning following the quake, but it was lifted less than two hours later after the immediate threat subsided.

Rescue operations are continuing in the city of Kashima, where the second floor of a shopping centre collapsed. AFP, citing rescue workers, reported that several people were trapped inside the building. Police also said they had received reports of an explosion at the site.

Japanese broadcaster TBS reported that there had been multiple fatalities at the shopping centre. However, local police told AFP they were unable to confirm any deaths at the time of reporting.

Television footage showed collapsed buildings, damaged bridges and overturned freight train wagons, highlighting the scale of the destruction.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said emergency services were still assessing the full extent of the disaster.

"We are still evaluating the number of casualties and the scale of the damage, but I have been informed that several people have been injured," she said in a televised address.

She added that the earthquake had caused power outages, fires in several locations, damage to roads and bridges, and the collapse of a number of buildings.
Public broadcaster NHK reported that at least 50 people had been taken to hospital, while 12 homes collapsed near the city of Yatsushiro.

Residents described scenes of panic as the earthquake shook buildings for an extended period.

"The shaking was extremely strong and lasted a long time. I was terrified," Chiharu Hara, 35, who was in Kumamoto on a business trip, told AFP.
She said the building she was in swayed violently, leaving occupants fearing it might collapse.

An NHK employee in the affected region also described the tremors as so powerful that standing was difficult, adding that aftershocks were continuing.
Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority said no abnormalities had been detected at nuclear facilities in the region.

Kyushu Electric Power reported that around 45,000 homes and businesses in Kumamoto Prefecture lost electricity, while confirming that the area's three nuclear reactors remained operating normally.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), which operates two semiconductor plants in Kumamoto, said it had evacuated employees from its facilities as a precautionary measure.

Japan remains highly vulnerable to earthquakes

The latest earthquake comes a decade after Kumamoto was struck by two devastating earthquakes in 2016. The first measured 6.5 magnitude, followed two days later by a 7.3-magnitude quake that claimed 273 lives and injured around 2,800 people.

Japan is among the world's most earthquake-prone countries, lying at the convergence of four major tectonic plates along the Pacific Ring of Fire. The country experiences hundreds of earthquakes every year, accounting for around 18% of global seismic activity.

Although most earthquakes are relatively minor, Japan continues to live with the legacy of the catastrophic 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami in 2011, which left around 18,500 people dead or missing and triggered the Fukushima nuclear disaster.


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