Japanese broadcaster TBS reported that a "considerable number" of people have died in a shopping mall in the southwestern city of Kumamoto, which was damaged by a major earthquake on Tuesday.

Other Japanese media said the casualties happened after an explosion at the Aeon Mall.

Emergency services earlier said "many people" were trapped inside the building after a floor collapsed.

The Aeon Mall had just reopened last month as a new and improved shopping and entertainment complex to commemorate its recovery from a deadly tremor a decade ago.

The mall was so badly damaged in the magnitude 7.3 Kumamoto earthquake in April 2016 that it had to close for months and rebuild over even longer periods. As it went through a 2017 redevelopment and expansion, the mall highlighted its seismically reinforced ceilings and overall improvements to safety and resilience.

On Tuesday, much of the sprawling site was reduced to a skeleton and rubble.

Kumamoto police said the danger of aftershocks made it impossible to start search and rescue work in the compromised structure.

The epicentre of the quake was only a few miles away.

When the magnitude 7.1 tremor struck late afternoon on Tuesday, mall employees helped evacuate visitors outside the building, an Aeon spokesperson said.

About 200 people had been guided outside to safety, prefectural authorities said.

About an hour later, a powerful explosion blew the walls off and exposed large parts of the underlying structure.

Some 20 to 30 employees at the mall were still unaccounted for, public broadcaster NHK said.

Witnesses reported smelling gas in the area. (Agencies)
_____________________________
Last updated: 2026-07-28 HKT 22:21




Edited by Tony Sabine