Japan quake toll hits 34 as survivors struggle in heat
A 7.1-magnitude earthquake in Japan's Kumamoto region has resulted in 34 deaths and widespread infrastructure damage. Rescue efforts are ongoing at a collapsed shopping mall while thousands of residents face extreme heat without power or water.
Why it matters
Natural disasters of this magnitude cause significant humanitarian crises and highlight the vulnerability of regional infrastructure to seismic activity.
Hundreds of rescue workers are battling for another day to reach possible survivors in the remains of the Aeon shopping mall in Kashima in the Kumamoto region.
A firefighter works at the site of Aeon Mall shopping centre, after an explosion occurred following an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.1 struck Japan's southern Kumamoto prefecture, in Kashima Town, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan, on Jul 29, 2026. (Photo: Reuters.Kyodo News)
KUMAMOTO, Japan: Japanese emergency workers battled on Thursday (Jul 30) to rescue any remaining survivors from a devastated shopping mall , as the death toll from a major earthquake two days earlier hit 34 and thousands sweltered in punishing heat.
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