Skip next section What you need to know
What you need to know
- A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck southern Japan
- At least 13 people have died
- Rescuers are searching for missing employees at a partially collapsed mall
- Five people were killed in a factory smokestack collapse
- More than 36,000 homes are still without power.
Here is the latest on the aftermath of the earthquake in Japan:
Tired of missing our real-time updates? Click here to add us as a Preferred Source on Google. Then tap the “Star” or “Preferred” to keep DW News at the top of your feed.
Skip next section Hospitals struggle to cope near quake epicenter07/29/2026July 29, 2026
Hospitals struggle to cope near quake epicenter
Hospitals near the epicenter have come under severe strain as power outages and a surge in casualties disrupt medical care.
A hospital in the Uki district said it was unable to operate after losing electricity in the earthquake.
“It’s become like a field hospital,” the head of its administrative department told Japanese public broadcaster NHK.
Another hospital in the city suspended new admissions after treating 86 injured people, including three in serious condition, saying it could no longer accept additional emergency cases.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HwNfSkip next section Rescuers scramble for survivors after Japan earthquake07/29/2026July 29, 2026
Rescuers scramble for survivors after Japan earthquake
Rescuers are racing to find survivors after a magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck southern Japan, killing at least 13 people and leaving widespread damage across the region.
Eight people were pulled from the rubble of a partially collapsed shopping mall near the city of Kumamoto after an apparent explosion around an hour after Tuesday’s quake. However, three of those rescued later died.
Mall operator Aeon said four employees remained unaccounted for after checks on around 2,700 staff members. Customers had been evacuated immediately after the initial earthquake.
“Even now, there are people waiting to be rescued, and this is a race against time. We will marshal all available resources on the ground to save and rescue as many people as possible,” Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said from Tokyo.
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
Authorities are investigating whether a gas explosion caused the collapse at the Aeon mall. While rescuers reported smelling gas inside the building, government spokesperson Minoru Kihara said the cause was still unclear.
Firefighters, police and around 170 military personnel concentrated their efforts on sections of the mall where calls for help had been heard.
More than 4,500 soldiers have been deployed across the disaster zone as emergency crews search damaged buildings, restore power and assess ruptured roads.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HwF5Skip next section Five killed in factory chimney collapse07/29/2026July 29, 2026
Five killed in factory chimney collapse
In the city of Yatsushiro, five people were killed when part of a red-and-white smokestack collapsed at a Nippon Paper Industries factory, according to the Kumamoto prefectural government’s disaster response team.
Seven people were rescued from the debris, but four others were still believed to be trapped.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HwLmSkip next section Widespread infrastructure damage07/29/2026July 29, 2026
Widespread infrastructure damage
About 260,000 people across Kumamoto prefecture have been told to seek shelter as damaged buildings, buckled roads and a collapsed bridge reveal the scale of the destruction.
Police received hundreds of emergency calls after the earthquake, including reports of collapsed structures and people in need of rescue.
The epicentre was around 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) south of Kumamoto City, the largest city in the central part of Kyushu island and home to about 700,000 people. Over 100 aftershocks followed the initial quake.
The port city of Yatsushiro was among the worst-hit areas. Part of a local bridge fell into the Kumagawa River, while authorities warned residents to remain alert for further powerful tremors and landslides over the coming week.
The earthquake reached the maximum level of 7 on Japan’s seismic intensity scale in some areas.
More than 36,000 homes remained without electricity on Wednesday as temperatures climbed to around 34 degrees Celsius, prompting authorities to issue heatstroke warnings.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HwPiSkip next section Major manufacturers halt production07/29/2026July 29, 2026
Major manufacturers halt production
Several major companies, including Renesas Electronics, Sony, Tokyo Electron and Honda, have suspended operations in their Kumamoto plants following the earthquake.
Toyota Motor said it would also halt work at three factories outside Kumamoto prefecture through Friday because of the impact on suppliers.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, evacuated employees from its local plant as a precaution after the quake.
The company said it began gradually resuming operations late on Tuesday.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HwRpSkip next section How prone is the region to earthquakes?07/29/2026July 29, 2026
How prone is the region to earthquakes?
Japan is one of the world’s most earthquake-prone countries because it lies on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a belt of volcanoes and ocean trenches where several tectonic plates meet.
The country accounts for around 20% of the world’s earthquakes of magnitude 6.0 or higher.
The Kumamoto prefecture was struck by a devastating earthquake 10 years ago that killed 275 people, injured another 2,739 and damaged thousands of buildings.
The walls of Kumamoto Castle, one of the city’s main tourist attractions, were badly damaged in that disaster.
The castle was damaged once again in Tuesday’s earthquake. The tremblor also affected local shrines and a 17th-century tea house.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HwUbShow more posts
About The Author
