Disasters & Incidents
Japan quake mall search ends as toll rises to 36
Japanese officials said Saturday they had ended rescue operations at a shopping mall damaged by an explosion after a powerful earthquake in Kumamoto, as the death toll from the disaster rose to at least 36.
The disaster management office in the Kumamoto region said 12 people were pulled from the mall site, including seven who were confirmed dead. An Aeon spokesperson told AFP that the seven people who died at the mall were employees of tenant stores.
A police official told a disaster management meeting that authorities had carried out a thorough two-day search with the fire service, the Self-Defence Forces and regional police units to ensure no one remained missing. The official said no such person was found.
The 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck the southwestern region on Tuesday. The mall had been evacuated before an explosion later damaged the building.
Rescue operations also ended Friday at a paper factory where a smokestack collapsed. Nine bodies were recovered there, and two survivors were pulled out.
The quake flattened homes, damaged bridges, triggered fires and left many residents without basic services. More than 9,000 people, many of them elderly, were still in shelters on Saturday. Power cuts were mostly resolved, but 59,000 households still had no water.
Update
Japanese officials said rescue operations had ended at the shopping mall damaged by an explosion after the quake.
The earthquake death toll rose to at least 36.
A total of 12 people were pulled from the mall site, including seven confirmed dead.
Officials said 59,000 households still had no water as of Saturday.
Source note: AFP news report published on 1 August 2026 at 10:03:00 UTC.
Update
Power cuts had been resolved across the Kumamoto region, while 79,000 households still had no water.
More than 9,000 people, many of them elderly, were in shelters.
Six people were in critical condition, according to a local disaster management office.
Military authorities airlifted 300 air conditioners to the region.
Local media reported many evacuation centres lacked air conditioning.
Source note: AFP news report published on 31 July 2026 at 09:20:10 UTC.
Update
The death toll from the Kumamoto earthquake rose to 35.
Sniffer dogs helped rescuers make a final sweep of the Aeon mall wreckage.
At the paper factory site, nine bodies had been recovered and search and rescue operations were terminated.
Around 4,500 households in Kumamoto still had no electricity and 79,000 had no water as of Friday.
About 5,100 military personnel were mobilised to help.
Source note: AFP news report published on 31 July 2026 at 05:32:29 UTC.
Update
The death toll rose from 30 to 34, according to the Kumamoto disaster management office.
Seven bodies had been extracted from the Aeon shopping mall rubble.
Eight people were confirmed dead at the Nippon Paper Industries factory in Yatsushiro city.
Five people were in critical condition after the quake.
Almost 9,500 local residents were in evacuation centres.
13,520 households remained without electricity on Thursday.
Source note: AFP news report published on 30 July 2026 at 07:56:41 UTC.
Update
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said the death toll from Tuesday's earthquake had reached 30.
Source note: AFP news report published on 30 July 2026 at 05:13:47 UTC.
Update
Kumamoto officials said four bodies had been extracted from the Aeon shopping mall rubble after a suspected gas blast following the quake.
A disaster management official said 10 people had been pulled from the mall, including four confirmed dead, one without vital signs and five injured.
Thousands of residents were without power and water as temperatures were forecast to reach 38C at the weekend.
Officials said 22,670 households and facilities still had no power on Thursday morning, and about 84,000 homes had water disruptions as of Wednesday.
Five people were confirmed killed and four were unaccounted for at the Nippon Paper Industries factory in Yatsushiro city.
Authorities sent hundreds of air conditioning units to shelters.
Source note: AFP news report published on 30 July 2026 at 04:16:07 UTC.
Update
Japan's government said the death toll from the earthquake had risen to 28.
Source note: AFP news report published on 30 July 2026 at 02:29:02 UTC.
Update
Four bodies had been pulled from the wreckage of the Aeon shopping mall in Kashima.
At the mall, 10 people had been pulled out: four confirmed dead, one without vital signs and five injured.
Hundreds of rescue workers were trying to reach possible survivors at the mall.
As of Thursday morning, 22,670 households and facilities still had no power.
Around 84,000 homes had water disruptions as of Wednesday.
Aftershocks continued, with temperatures forecast to reach at least 35C and a heatstroke warning issued.
Source note: AFP news report published on 30 July 2026 at 01:57:09 UTC.
Update
Kumamoto authorities said five more people were in critical condition.
Source note: AFP news report published on 30 July 2026 at 01:02:17 UTC.
Update
Authorities said the death toll from the Japan earthquake had risen to 17.
Authorities said six more people were feared dead.
Source note: AFP news report published on 30 July 2026 at 00:50:16 UTC.
Update
Rescuers were searching the wreckage of the Aeon Mall Kumamoto in Kashima for trapped survivors on Wednesday.
Aeon president Akio Yoshida said three people died at the mall, with one more fatality feared and three others missing.
Aeon executive Keiji Ohno said the mall explosion was likely caused by gas, while adding that the cause was still being investigated.
Government spokesman Minoru Kihara said about 130 police, 450 firefighters and 170 military personnel were involved in the mall rescue operation.
Officials said about 31,200 households and facilities still had no power on Wednesday morning and 84,000 homes had water disruptions.
High-speed shinkansen trains mostly remained suspended on Wednesday.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 09:31:57 UTC.
Update
Five people have been confirmed dead at the Nippon Paper Industries factory in Yatsushiro.
Four other people at the factory remain unaccounted for.
Part of a red-and-white smokestack collapsed at the factory in Tuesday's quake.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 08:03:02 UTC.
Update
Rescuers were struggling to reach survivors feared trapped in wreckage after the quake.
NHK cited police as saying the number of people trapped at the Kashima shopping mall was lower than initial reports of 20 to 30.
The quake was followed by dozens of aftershocks.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 03:46:14 UTC.
Update
The government said 9,186 people were in 506 evacuation centres across five prefectures as of 7:00 am Wednesday.
Government spokesman Minoru Kihara said seven people had serious injuries and 29 had minor injuries.
The evacuation centres included locations in Kumamoto and Fukuoka.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 02:50:00 UTC.
Update
Japan said more than 9,000 people were in evacuation centres after the quake.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 02:40:27 UTC.
Update
Rescuers were still trying to reach people feared trapped in damaged buildings after the quake.
A government source told Kyodo the Kashima mall was apparently gutted by a gas explosion.
The mall operator Aeon said the explosion happened after customers and staff had evacuated.
A local official said eight people were rescued from the mall, five of them injured.
NHK quoted police as saying the number of people trapped in the mall was lower than initial reports of 20 to 30, but the exact number was unknown.
Police quoted by NHK said no safe access route into the mall had been found.
AFP-verified footage showed parts of a wall at Kumamoto Castle collapsing, and Kumamoto airport was closed for several hours before reopening Tuesday evening.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 02:08:42 UTC.
Update
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said 13 people died following Tuesday's earthquake in Japan.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 01:08:18 UTC.
Update
Seven people were severely injured.
The local government said nine people were unaccounted for at the Nippon Paper Industries factory in Yatsushiro.
A local official said eight people were rescued from the damaged mall, five of them injured.
NHK quoted police as saying the number of people trapped in the mall was lower than initial reports of 20 to 30, but the exact number was not known.
Officials said 36,880 households and facilities in Kumamoto had no power on Wednesday morning.
Source note: AFP news report published on 29 July 2026 at 00:38:35 UTC.
Update
Japan's Fire and Disaster Management Agency said the five dead included two people in a badly damaged shopping mall and three others elsewhere in the southwestern Kumamoto region.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 23:36:28 UTC.
Update
The fire department said five people had died after the Japan earthquake.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 23:29:51 UTC.
Update
NHK reported nine people were unaccounted for at the factory in Yatsushiro city where a smokestack collapsed.
Kyodo News, citing a government source, reported that the mall blast was likely caused by a gas leak.
Kyodo, citing a mall operator spokesperson, reported that many people had evacuated the mall after the earthquake and before the blast was reported about 30 minutes later.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 22:45:09 UTC.
Update
NHK reported that the two people killed at the shopping mall were women.
NHK reported that three other people were in cardiopulmonary arrest: one at the mall and two at a factory in Yatsushiro city where a smokestack collapsed.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 21:27:02 UTC.
Update
NHK reported that two people died in a shopping mall hit by the Japan earthquake.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 21:13:15 UTC.
Update
Emergency responders searched early Wednesday for people feared trapped in the damaged shopping mall.
NHK reported that regional officials believed 10 people were unaccounted for in the mall, after earlier reporting that 20 to 30 employees could not be contacted.
Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae pledged late Tuesday that emergency responders would work through the night on rescue and lifesaving operations.
NHK reported multiple people were also believed unaccounted for at a factory in Yatsushiro city where the tip of a chimney fell down.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 17:51:46 UTC.
Update
NHK cited police sources as saying 20 to 30 mall employees could not be contacted.
Kyodo reported that four people from the mall had been taken to hospital and were conscious.
NHK reported that two hospitals had taken in at least 50 injured patients each and that around 10 people were hurt at a nursing home.
NHK reported that multiple people were believed to be unaccounted for at a Japan Paper Industries factory after the tip of a chimney fell down.
Japan's military mobilised 3,600 personnel and sent 20 aircraft to assess damage from the air.
Kumamoto airport was closed and later reopened on Tuesday evening.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 13:19:53 UTC.
Update
Kyodo reported that one person died after a house collapsed in the Japan earthquake.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 12:56:26 UTC.
Update
Police told AFP they could not confirm whether there were any fatalities at the damaged mall in Kashima.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 11:16:34 UTC.
Update
Broadcaster TBS reported that a "considerable" number of people had died at the mall after the quake.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 10:58:01 UTC.
Update
Emergency services said many people were trapped inside a shopping mall damaged by the earthquake.
The fire department said a shopping complex's second floor collapsed in Kashima town.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 10:38:37 UTC.
Update
NHK reported that many people were trapped inside a damaged shopping mall in Kumamoto after the earthquake.
Police had earlier said they received reports of a sound like an explosion at the Aeon Mall outlet in Kumamoto, with no information then on damage or casualties from that incident.
Source note: AFP news report published on 28 July 2026 at 10:19:05 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The precise cause of the mall explosion is not established in the new update.
Source
AFP news report published on .