Japan earthquake death toll reaches 28 as heat and aftershock hamper rescues
Rescue teams searched damaged buildings in Kumamoto Prefecture on July 30 as the toll from Tuesday’s magnitude 6.8 earthquake rose to 28 dead and at least 62 injured.
The death toll from the magnitude 6.8 earthquake that struck Japan’s Kumamoto Prefecture on Tuesday, July 28, rose to 28 on Thursday as rescuers worked through high temperatures and a strong aftershock.
Prefectural authorities reported at least 62 people injured. Nearly 5,000 Self-Defence Forces personnel were deployed, while temperatures were expected to reach 35C and a magnitude 5.8 aftershock complicated searches.
About 170 rescuers were searching the Aeon shopping mall in Kashima. The company said roughly 3,000 customers had been evacuated before a gas explosion in another part of the building. Twelve people were recovered from rubble there, six of whom died, while the cause of the explosion remained under investigation.
Searches also continued at a paper mill in Yatsushiro, where a chimney collapsed. Five of seven trapped people were confirmed dead and two were seriously injured, while four other workers remained missing.
Authorities said nearly 23,000 homes lacked electricity, about 75,000 were without running water and approximately 15,000 people had moved into 400 shelters. Toyota, Honda and several semiconductor companies temporarily halted production in Kyushu while assessing worker safety and supply disruptions.
