Kumamoto searches continue as reported quake toll reaches 35
The reported toll rose to 35 as more than 9,000 people remained in shelters, water outages affected 79,100 homes and crews searched a damaged shopping centre.
- The reported death toll from the Kumamoto earthquake has reached 35, although one death is still being investigated for a direct link to the disaster.
- Search and rescue operations for missing people are continuing, even after the 72-hour period considered crucial for survival has passed.
- A significant search effort is focused on a shopping mall where an explosion occurred and seven of the confirmed victims were found.
- Authorities have so far confirmed the identities of 27 of the deceased victims.
More than 9,000 people remained in evacuation shelters across Kumamoto Prefecture on Friday (July 31), as emergency teams continued searching for those missing since Tuesday’s earthquake despite the end of the 72 hours considered crucial for survival.
At 3pm, 9,134 people were staying at 374 shelters, while many others had taken refuge in their cars.
Temperatures exceeded 35 degrees Celsius in numerous affected areas, adding to the risks facing evacuees and rescue workers.
The prefectural government advised residents to drink fluids frequently and take precautions against heatstroke and economy-class syndrome.
At Aeon Mall Kumamoto in Kashima, police, Self-Defense Forces personnel and firefighters worked through the debris in case anyone remained trapped.
An explosion had struck the shopping centre shortly after the earthquake.
Twelve people were brought out of the mall, but seven were subsequently confirmed dead.
Authorities were still trying to establish the identities of those seven victims.
Kumamoto Prefecture’s disaster response headquarters placed the overall death toll at 35.
The figure included one case in which investigators had yet to determine whether the death was connected to the earthquake.
The disaster produced a maximum seismic intensity of 7, the highest level on Japan’s scale.
The identities of 27 victims had been confirmed.
They comprised 20 people aged from their 30s to their 90s in Yatsushiro, four people aged from their 50s to their 90s in Hikawa, two people aged from their 60s to their 70s in Uki and a man in his 20s in Kosa.
Damage assessments showed that 162 buildings had been destroyed in Hikawa, one of the areas where seismic intensity reached 7.
Some local authorities had also started receiving applications for certificates documenting disaster damage.
Electricity had returned to almost all of Kumamoto Prefecture by Friday afternoon.
Water services, however, remained unavailable to 79,100 households.
Kyushu Railway Co., or JR Kyushu, restarted Kyushu Shinkansen services between Hakata Station in Fukuoka Prefecture and Kumamoto Station on Friday morning, although trains were running at a reduced frequency.
The earthquake occurred at about 4.27pm on Tuesday.
Seismic intensity 7 was recorded in Uki and Hikawa, while upper 6 was measured in Yatsushiro, Kashima, Kumamoto City, and other locations.
[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
