A powerful 7.1‑magnitude earthquake ripped through Japan’s southern Kumamoto prefecture on Tuesday, knocking out power to thousands of homes, rupturing major roads and injuring at least 50 people, authorities said. The full scale of destruction was still emerging late Tuesday as emergency crews raced to reach damaged neighborhoods.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said officials were still assessing casualties and structural damage. “Power outages and fires have occurred in some areas, and there has also been damage to roads and bridges and the collapse of buildings,” she told reporters in Tokyo.
Across Kumamoto, residents described moments of terror as the quake struck. A shop owner in central Kumamoto said she watched her storefront wall collapse in seconds. “The shaking was violent. I grabbed my daughter and ran,” she said, standing beside piles of shattered concrete. Passengers on a high‑speed train reported being thrown from their seats, while families in rural towns fled into the streets as homes swayed and furniture toppled. One hospital reported more than 50 injuries, NHK said. Several people aboard a high‑speed train were also hurt, according to the Nikkei newspaper.
The disaster’s impact rippled across the region. Multiple buildings were damaged, including an Aeon shopping mall where NHK reported an explosion. Footage showed fires burning, walls crumbling and debris littering streets. A freight train derailed, rail services were suspended and flights were grounded as engineers inspected tracks, bridges and airport facilities. Large cracks split major roads, including an elevated highway, complicating rescue access and raising concerns about aftershocks. Japan’s Meteorological Agency warned that additional tremors were likely, urging residents to stay alert as emergency teams continued damage assessment.
