A powerful earthquake struck southern Japan last Tuesday, causing widespread damage and casualties across the island of Kyushu. The 6.8-magnitude quake, centered near the rural town of Hikawa in Kumamoto Prefecture, resulted in at least 38 fatalities and hundreds of injuries, with many residents affected by collapsed homes, power outages, and disrupted water supplies.

Hikawa was among the hardest-hit areas, where older houses fell victim to the intense shaking, which was described by some residents as more severe than the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake. Many inhabitants spent the night outdoors in their vehicles, fearing ongoing aftershocks. Town officials provided food and water to those gathered near the town hall. Tomohide Nagata, a volunteer firefighter, recounted rescuing a man trapped beneath rubble, an effort that underscored the ongoing search and rescue operations underway.

In addition to structural damage, nearly 23,000 homes lost electricity and 75,000 experienced water outages, Kumamoto officials reported. Approximately 15,000 people sought shelter in around 400 locations throughout the region. The government deployed almost 5,000 members of the Self-Defense Forces (SDF), who delivered essential supplies including water and coolers to evacuation centers. Defence Minister Shinjirō Koizumi emphasized the priority of life-saving measures in the relief response.

Damage was not confined to residential areas. In the town of Kashima, the earthquake struck while thousands were inside an Aeon shopping center. After initially evacuating about 3,000 customers to a nearby parking lot, a gas explosion occurred inside the building when some staff members returned. The company expressed regret for not anticipating the explosion and continues to investigate its cause. Although no customers were harmed by the blast, workers inside suffered injuries. Eyewitness accounts described the sudden onset of smoke and dust making breathing difficult.

In Uki City, where the seismic intensity reached the highest level on the Japanese shindo scale, residents shared stories of narrow escapes and difficult rescue efforts. Many sheltered at repurposed facilities such as Toyono Elementary School after structural damage rendered usual disaster centers unusable. A local woman reported shielding her children from falling furniture before evacuating. Meanwhile, in the Asakawa district, volunteers were forced to halt their efforts to rescue an elderly man trapped beneath a flattened house due to continuing aftershocks.

South of Hikawa, in Yatsushiro, a 63-year-old man narrowly avoided injury because he was not present when his wooden workplace collapsed. He spent the night in a tent near his home, uncertain about the path forward.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi visited affected areas on Monday, marking the first official inspection since the quake. Local officials and emergency responders continue to coordinate relief and recovery efforts amid persistent aftershocks and extreme heat, which reached temperatures of up to 35 degrees Celsius, raising concerns about vulnerable populations.