Rescue teams continued searching through the debris of a shopping mall in southwestern Japan on Wednesday after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck the Kumamoto region on Tuesday, killing at least 13 people. The quake triggered a large explosion at the Aeon Mall in the town of Kashima approximately 50 minutes after the tremor, complicating rescue efforts.

The earthquake, which hit the island of Kyushu at 4:27 p.m. local time, caused widespread destruction across the area, including collapsed buildings, fires, and damage to infrastructure. Thousands of homes were flattened, tens of thousands of residents experienced power outages and water supply disruptions, and transportation services including Shinkansen bullet trains were largely suspended.

At the Aeon Mall, three fatalities have been confirmed, with one additional death feared and three people still missing. Aeon president Akio Yoshida reported the casualties during a press briefing. Keiji Ohno, an executive at Aeon, indicated that gas leaks were a probable cause of the explosion, though investigations are ongoing. Approximately 130 police officers, 450 firefighters, and 170 military personnel were involved in rescue operations at the mall site.

Additional casualties were reported at the Nippon Paper Industries factory in Yatsushiro city, where five people were confirmed dead and four were unaccounted for following the partial collapse of a red-and-white smokestack. The factory sustained extensive structural damage, according to a government official.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described the situation as a “race against time” to aid those affected. As of early Wednesday, over 9,000 evacuees had taken shelter in 506 locations across three regions of Kyushu, government spokesman Minoru Kihara said.

Eyewitnesses described the quake as one of the strongest they had experienced. Kanzo Matsumoto, a 73-year-old inn operator in Yatsushiro, said his community was grappling with the scale of the devastation. A local motorcyclist, Tokito Kitagawa, recounted being caught by surprise and seeking shelter at a convenience store as the tremor struck.

Inside the affected mall, employees initially escorted customers to safety, believing the danger had passed due to a lack of visible smoke. However, an explosion occurred shortly afterward, according to a social media user identified as Palan who was present at the site. Video footage posted from the scene showed rescuers navigating through twisted metal, fallen ceiling materials, and debris.

In total, about 31,200 households and facilities remained without electricity on Wednesday morning, while roughly 84,000 were reported to have impaired water service. The earthquake also toppled a cargo train, damaged a traditional torii gate, and caused multiple road closures, further hampering emergency response efforts.

Authorities continue to assess the full extent of the damage and work to assist those displaced by the disaster.