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Japan Mounts Rescues in Buildings That Collapsed After Strong Quake
Emergency workers were racing to find people and extinguish fires after the 6.8 magnitude quake struck the southwestern prefecture of Kumamoto.
July 28, 2026Francesca RegaladoRiver Akira Davis and Leo Sands
River Akira Davis reported from Tokyo.
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A powerful 6.8 magnitude earthquake hit southwest Japan on Tuesday afternoon, igniting fires near its epicenter, damaging buildings and highways, and injuring dozens, according to Japan’s public broadcaster.
Fire officials said they were racing to rescue people feared trapped inside a shopping mall in a southern neighborhood of Kumamoto City, after its second floor collapsed and injured at least two people. Aerial footage showed extensive damage to the building.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said the earthquake struck around 4:30 p.m. local time in Kumamoto Prefecture on Kyushu island, the southernmost of Japan’s main islands. According to local officials, the force of the quake collapsed buildings across the region, trapping people inside buildings, as fires broke out in Kumamoto City, the regional capital.
Japan’s Fire and Disaster Management Authority said local firefighters had responded after a factory chimney collapsed in Yatsushiro City, in Kumamoto Province. Citing local officials, the public broadcaster, NHK, reported that two people were found “in a state of cardiopulmonary arrest,” and nine others were missing.
One person who was found in a collapsed house and taken to a hospital in Kumamoto has died, according to the Kumamoto Prefectural Police. At least 50 people were being treated for injuries at a hospital in Hikawa, a town to the south of the city, according to the public broadcaster NHK.
Aerial images taken by NHK showed that elevated sections of the Kyushu Expressway had broken into two pieces, as other footage showed a partially collapsed wall at Kumamoto Castle, a landmark in the city’s heart. Ms. Takaichi said the authorities were trying to assess the severity of damage to buildings and bridges.
The earthquake’s epicenter was near Uto, a coastal city around 30 miles from Kumamoto City in the same prefecture, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The agency had initially reported it as a 7.1-magnitude quake before revising it down.
Local transportation links were affected by the force of the quake. Train services on Kyushu island were suspended, and Kumamoto International Airport, which serves the regional capital of more than 700,000 people, said it was closed. Across the region, the local police reported at least 12 collapsed houses, including four where people had been trapped.
The Fire and Disaster Management Authority said at least seven fires had broken out throughout the prefecture, mostly concentrated in Kumamoto City.
The Japan Meteorological Agency warned that earthquakes of a similar scale could occur in the next few days.
There were no reports of abnormalities at the Sendai Nuclear Power Plant, which is in Kagoshima Prefecture, near Kumamoto, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said in a news briefing. The power plant has two nuclear reactors and supplies electricity to the Kyushu region.
Here’s what else we’re covering.
Seismic history: The earthquake evoked painful memories for residents of Kumamoto, which was hit by a powerful series of earthquakes 10 years ago that killed 278 people across the prefecture and surrounding areas. Read more ›
Tsunami warnings lifted: After initially warning that the earthquake could trigger a tsunami around the Ariake and Yatsushiro Seas, the Japan Meteorological Agency lifted its tsunami advisories at around 6.10 p.m. local time.
Kumamoto Castle: Video showed damage at one of Japan’s oldest, grandest and most renowned castles. Read more ›
Dashcam video published by Japan’s public broadcaster NHK shows the moment a large blast erupted from the south side of the Aeon Mall in Kumamoto.
It is unclear what caused the explosion.
July 28, 2026, 9:14 a.m. ETOne person who was found in a collapsed house and transported to a hospital in Kumamoto has died, according to the Kumamoto Prefectural Police.
Kumamoto Castle, a famed landmark, is damaged in the earthquake.
Kumamoto Castle, one of Japan’s oldest, grandest and most renowned castles, was damaged on Tuesday when a powerful earthquake struck southwest Japan.
Videos showed a stone wall of the centuries-old fortified structure in Kumamoto Prefecture that had partially collapsed, and rocks that had tumbled to the ground.
Kumamoto Castle was built by a general named Kato Kiyomasa and was completed in 1607. In the more than 400 years since, the castle “has set the stage for the stories of a variety of significant heroes,” according to its website.
The landmark is particularly known for the Siege of Kumamoto Castle, during the Satsuma Rebellion of 1877. From within the castle, 3,500 soldiers held off 13,000 members of the Satsuma Army, according to the castle’s website. “Kumamoto Castle demonstrated, in name and reality, that it was an impregnable fortress.”
This was not the first time the historic structure was damaged in an earthquake. In 2016, after powerful earthquakes and aftershocks hit southwest Japan, sections of a stone wall around the castle collapsed into the moat.
Kumamoto Castle, described as “the symbol of Kumamoto” by the local university, continued to draw many visitors every year, including from Taiwan and around the world, even as it was still being renovated and recovering from the damage it sustained.
On Tuesday, the castle’s management announced on its social media account that it would close for the day. “We ask everyone to prioritize your own safety above all else in your actions,” the announcement said.
Show moreJuly 28, 2026, 8:43 a.m. ETThe mountainous region of Kumamoto is no stranger to quakes.
The coastal city of Uto is temperate and peaceful, typically known for its beautiful landscapes and its suitability for seaweed and fruit farming.
But on Tuesday, an area near Uto was the epicenter of the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that hit Kumamoto Prefecture, a region on the southwestern island of Kyushu.
Much of the prefecture is mountainous terrain: A national park in Kumamoto is home to Mount Aso, one of Japan’s largest active volcanoes. Many of the prefecture’s 1.68 million residents live in the flatter areas close to the island’s western coast, including in Kumamoto City and quieter settlements such as the peninsula city of Uto.
Powerful and deadly earthquakes have shaken the prefecture, which sits on a fault zone that divides Kyushu from southwest to northeast.
Many Kumamoto residents recall painful memories from a decade ago, when a series of earthquakes across the prefecture and nearby areas killed 278 people and injured more than 2,000 others.
The quakes, which included ones with magnitudes of up to 7.3, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency, toppled houses and buildings, buckled roads and caused numerous landslides. Sections of two of the area’s national treasures, Kumamoto Castle and Aso Shrine, collapsed from the force of those quakes.
In the years since, officials have rebuilt the damaged infrastructure and tried to bolster it against future quakes. A bridge that had been a major gateway for the area was also destroyed, though a replacement was reopened in 2021.
Show moreJuly 28, 2026, 8:26 a.m. ETAbout 3,600 military personnel have been dispatched to Kumamoto to assist with relief efforts, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said in brief remarks late Tuesday evening. “Extensive damage has already been confirmed,” she said. “I extend my heartfelt sympathies to everyone affected by this disaster.”
July 28, 2026, 7:51 a.m. ETThere have been more than 60 aftershocks ranging in magnitude from 1 to 4 in the aftermath of the 6.8-magnitude quake in Kumamoto, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
July 28, 2026, 7:13 a.m. ETMany people appear to be trapped inside a shopping mall in Kumamoto after an explosion at the facility caused the second floor to collapse, according to the local fire department. Two people have been confirmed injured so far, and rescue operations are underway, it said.
Aerial footage taken by the private broadcaster Nippon TV captured a collapsed shrine at Yatsushiro Castle Ruins. A different castle was damaged in the city of Kumamoto.
Surveillance cameras across the southern island of Kyushu captured violent shaking as the tremors hit.
Japan’s military is conducting emergency relief in Kumamoto, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said at a news conference Tuesday evening.
July 28, 2026, 6:23 a.m. ETA magnitude 4.2 aftershock struck Kumamoto around 7:00 p.m., according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
July 28, 2026, 5:59 a.m. ETAs of 6 p.m., seven fires had broken out in Kumamoto Prefecture, according to the disaster management agency. Most were in Kumamoto City, it said.
As of 5 p.m. in Japan, there were 12 reports of collapsed houses and four reports of people trapped inside homes, according to the Kumamoto Prefecture police.
July 28, 2026, 5:38 a.m. ETA hospital in Hikawa, a town in Kumamoto, said it was treating at least 50 people with injuries caused by the earthquake, according to the public broadcaster NHK.
July 28, 2026, 5:30 a.m. ETThere were no reports of abnormalities at the Sendai Nuclear Power Plant, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said during a news briefing. The power plant, which has two reactors and supplies electricity to the Kyushu region, is in Kagoshima prefecture, south of Kumamoto.
July 28, 2026, 5:26 a.m. ETThe Kyushu Expressway was badly damaged by the earthquake, according to state broadcaster NHK. Aerial footage taken by NHK shortly before 6 p.m. showed two elevated sections of the highway that had fallen out of alignment, with a large gap in between.
July 28, 2026, 5:19 a.m. ETFootage from Kumamoto revealed widespread damage, with NHK airing visuals of a severed bridge in Yatsushiro city and video on social media showing a wall that partially collapsed at Kumamoto Castle, a famed landmark in the prefecture.
The Japan Meteorological Agency lifted its tsunami advisories around 6:10 p.m. local time.
July 28, 2026, 5:11 a.m. ETAll train service has been suspended on Kyushu Island, including shinkansen bullet trains, the JR Kyushu Railway Company said on its website. Kyushu is the southernmost of Japan’s main islands.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said at a news conference that government officials had received reports of injuries, power outages and fires in some areas, as well as damage to roads, bridges and buildings.
Japanese power company Kyushu Electric said that more than 48,000 households in Kumamoto and the surrounding prefectures were without power as of 6 p.m. local time.
July 28, 2026, 5:01 a.m. ETKumamoto’s international airport said on its website that its runway was closed indefinitely due to the earthquake. It did not provide details of any damage.
July 28, 2026, 4:57 a.m. ETIn a social media post, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said she had instructed officials to rapidly assess the damage from the quake and mobilize efforts to rescue residents in affected areas.
July 28, 2026, 4:50 a.m. ETFor residents of Kumamoto, Tuesday’s earthquake stirs painful memories of a powerful series of earthquakes and aftershocks a decade ago that left 278 people dead across the prefecture and surrounding areas. The photo below, from 2016, shows damaged buildings after those quakes.