Japan earthquake: Widespread damage from magnitude 7.1 quake
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake has caused significant damage in southwestern Japan, leading to building collapses and multiple missing persons. Rescue operations are underway at a shopping mall and a paper factory where individuals remain trapped.
Why it matters
Major seismic events in Japan have significant humanitarian and economic impacts, testing the country's disaster response infrastructure.
Image source, Reuters Image caption, The fire department said the second floor of the mall collapsed, "leaving many people trapped inside"
Nineteen people remain missing at a collapsed shopping centre and a damaged paper factory after a strong earthquake hit south-western Japan.
A local disaster management official told the BBC four people were rescued and another 10 are missing after a blast at the Aeon Mall in Kashima, Kumamoto prefecture, following the magnitude 6.8 tremor.
In Yatsushiro City, two people were found in a state of "cardiac arrest" and nine are unaccounted for after a chimney collapsed at Nippon Paper's Yatsushiro Plant.
The quake hit Kyushu island at 16:27 local time (07:27 GMT) on Tuesday, with hundreds of thousands of people told to move to evacuation shelters. A tsunami warning was lifted within one hour.
The quake was strong enough to be felt in South Korea.
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