Hope Dwindles For Rescues After Japan Earthquake

July 30, 2026 4:56 am

KUMAMOTO, Japan (AP) — The Kumamoto prefectural government says the powerful earthquake that hit southwestern Japan earlier this week has now killed at least 25 people. The magnitude 7.1 earthquake on Tuesday set off an explosion at a mall, toppled a factory chimney and flattened homes in the Kumamoto area on Japan’s southern main island of Kyushu. Time was running out to find survivors as rescuers continued to work. The total number of those missing was unclear. The quake left at least 86 people injured, five of them seriously, the prefectural government said.